Clarity
by sourulfur
Summary: In a world where even friendships between humans and werewolves is rare, Stiles Stilinski finds himself in a struggle that could cost him his life. Derek Hale is worth it, though. The country is trying to make humans and werewolves more equal, but there are some, like the politician Victoria Argent, who believe this needs to be changed.
1. Chapter 1

Senior year. Stiles Stilinski and Scott McCall were excited, all smiles as they piled into Stiles' Jeep on that first day. It was the first day that the two of them would actually be in school together since before they became step-brothers. The two schools were merging together that year, something about funding or lack of teachers (Stiles did not really pay attention; all that mattered was he and Scott were in school together again). "It'll be like old times, only... no recess," Stiles said with a grin and a chuckle as he turned onto the two-lane road that led straight up to the school parking lot.

"It'll be better, though!" Scott insisted with a nod as he practically bounced in the passenger seat, grinning over at his best friend. "It's senior year, man."

"Did they tell you we have to share lockers?" Stiles pulled a face at the idea as he pulled into his usual parking space. Scott seemed slightly confused and Stiles shrugged before explaining, "We don't have enough lockers for everyone. We barely had enough _before _the schools merged. So, now we have to share."

"Oh! Yeah, that makes sense. D'you know who your locker partner is? Is it me? I hope it's me."

Stiles chuckled at Scott's energetic rambling (maybe sugary cereal _and_ coffee was a bad idea) that was typically more common in himself than his step-brother while they climbed out of the Jeep. "Uhm, I think the paper said D. Hale? I'm not sure, though. I dunno who that is."

Scott nodded a little, seeming slightly put-out that he and Stiles would not be locker partners. Stiles rolled his eyes fondly at his brother and nudged the other teen. "Derek's kind of a jerk," Scott explained as they made their way into the building. "He can be cool and all, but sometimes he just gets this attitude that makes you wanna knock the smirk off of his face. Not all that different from you, actually."

"Hey! I'm not sure if I should take offense to that or not." Stiles glared at Scott anyway as they walked toward their lockers, only then finding out that even though they were not sharing a locker, their lockers were side-by-side. "Oh, cool! Now I can steal your Pringles easier."

"Dude, no. Mine. Back off." Scott narrowed his eyes a little at Stiles as he opened his locker to find that half of it was already decorated, obviously by someone either more feminine or a girl. Scott's head tipped slightly to the right as he noticed a picture pinned up on the inside of the door of himself and his girlfriend, Allison. After a moment, a bright smile formed on his features as he said, "Dude, I think I'm sharing with Allison."

Stiles rolled his eyes fondly at the other teen, smiling as he shoved his extra notebooks and pens into the empty shelf of the locker he was using. The high shelf already held some notebooks and writing utensils, as well as a scientific calculator and a binder. There was really nothing too distinguishing about the person he was sharing with besides the newspaper clipping from the year before about Derek Hale helping his school's basketball team win their division's tournament. Stiles smiled a little to himself before he took a picture out of his backpack to stick to the door with a magnet. It was a picture of himself, Scott, Melissa (Scott's mother), and John (Stiles' dad) on their parents wedding day. They were all dressed up, smiling and laughing in the photo. Even the slight lens flare from Scott's squinted eyes did not ruin the photo.

He turned to say something to Scott, but he noticed the dopey smile that crossed his best friend's face before Scott looked toward the double doors at the end of the hall. That was all Stiles needed to see to know that Allison was almost there. Sure enough, a few moments later, Allison came into the hallway, flanked by two people that Stiles did not recognize. Scott straightened up a little more and walked over to his girlfriend, meeting her half-way down the hall. Stiles did not hear what Scott said to the other two teens, but they both nodded, and the girl squeezed Scott's arm before she strode farther down the hall and past Stiles. The teen then made sure he put up everything but one notebook and one pen, which he would need for his first class (Advanced Chem with Harris). Then, he picked up his backpack, swinging it over his shoulder only to freeze for a moment when he felt it hit someone, and he quickly spun around to face the person with an apology that died when he found himself face-to-face with the guy that had walked in with Allison. He had a slightly amused smirk on his face and Stiles laughed slightly as he said, "Oops, sorry. Didn't realize anyone was there."

The other teen laughed with a smile, before pointing over Stiles' shoulder at the locker. "Are you finished? I kind of need my things," Derek stated.

"Oh, right! Yeah, sorry," replied Stiles before he stepped aside so that Derek could step forward and grab one of the notebooks that had been in there when Stiles opened the locker earlier. "I'm Stiles, by the way."

"Derek."

"I know." Stiles mentally face-palmed after the words slipped out and Derek's brow lifted in slight surprised, an amused smirk on his face. "I mean, I actually paid attention to my locker assignment, unlike some people." Stiles gestured over his shoulder toward where Allison and Scott stood talking. "He had all summer to know that he'd be sharing with Allison but did not know until he got here and found the photo."

Derek seemed to be unsure what to say to that, so he remained quiet as he shut their shared locker, spinning the dial of the lock once to make sure it was closed. He was not used to _humans_ speaking to him so freely and it honestly set him on edge a little. It was... nice, though. He had heard Scott talk about his human brother several times, so a part of him had known that whoever the guy was had to at least be _tolerant_ of werewolves; but, there was a difference between being tolerant and being friendly. Stiles definitely seemed to fall more on the friendly side. It was just slightly unnerving.

The bell rang just as Allison and Scott finally made their way toward their still-open locker and Stiles smiled at Derek. "See ya around, then," Stiles stated, waving a little before turning to kick Scott in the shin, earning himself a non-heated glare from the other teen. "Gotta deal with Harris. See you in English?"

Scott nodded and Allison greeted Stiles, who returned the greeting with a smile, before Stiles went off toward the chemistry classroom. He may have, somehow, gotten into the advanced class (which Harris was very picky about the students he let in there), but he had no doubts the man would still find reasons to pick on him. Being late on the first day was not in Stiles' agenda. He dropped down onto one of the two empty stools at the second station back on the right once he got in the room, the station he had used throughout high school to date. There were several familiar faces (such as Lydia Martin, who had to transfer to the other school their freshman year), Isaac Lahey, and Jackson Whittemore. The only thing that surprised him about them being in there was that Isaac and Jackson were sitting at the same station. There was a good distance between them, and Isaac seemed to want to try to disappear, but still. Isaac was not Danny, and therefore not someone that Stiles ever expected Jackson to sit with.

Just as the tardy bell rang, another student came in, and Stiles looked from his other classmates to the new entrant. He smiled with a soft, slightly surprised laugh to find that it was none other than Derek Hale. "Looks like you're stuck with Stilinski, Mr. Hale," their teacher, Mr. Harris said as he came into the classroom, shutting the door after him. "I apologize, but please take a seat."

Stiles sighed and rolled his eyes, leaning forward to rest his forearms on the table as Derek came over to sit on the empty stool at the station while Mr. Harris started talking about the class syllabus and what the year would consist of. Stiles stopped listening about half-way through, doodling on the edges of the papers instead. It was much more interesting drawing random, swirling designs in the blank parts of the boring and repetitive syllabus that was just like every one he had gotten every year before.

* * *

The rest of the morning passed by in a blur of information that Stiles did not remember, nor did he care to. He would learn everything throughout the year, anyway so what did it matter? Lunch, however, was an experience to remember. Stiles sort of paused near the doorway as he looked around the cafeteria to find that the students were basically separated off. All of the human students sat to one side, the werewolves to the other. There were several glares and looks of contempt from either side. Once again, Jackson sat next to Isaac (Stiles would have to pry into that later), and Scott sat at a table with Derek, the girl from that morning, Allison, Lydia, Erica Reyes, Vernon Boyd, and some other werewolves that Stiles did not know.

Stiles honestly had no idea where he should sit. There was a definite line between the two groups, but Stiles had friends on either side. Isaac smiled shyly at him from his spot next to Jackson, and Scott grinned brightly at him with a wave. Stiles let out a heavy breath as he tried to decide which side would be better. Either way, someone's feelings were going to be hurt; though, Stiles had a feeling Isaac wanted to sit with Scott as well. After all, the three of them were really good friends. There were several of the students he had gone to school with forever watching him, some with glares on their faces, as if daring him to sit anywhere but with them.

That, honestly, was all it took for Stiles to make up his mind. He lifted his head slightly in defiance before walking over to the table that Scott sat at, sitting on the empty chair between Scott and Derek, who was wrapped up in a conversation with one of the guys that Stiles did not know (though he thought he heard someone say the guy's name was Ethan). Stiles was not oblivious to the murmurs that resulted from his action, though he pretended not to hear while talking with Allison and Scott about a movie that the three of them had seen the other night.

Stiles idly started bouncing his knee as they spoke, poking moodily at the lunch that Melissa had packed for him sometime that morning before she went to the hospital. Stiles had insisted she did not need to do things like that; but, she insisted it was the only way she knew her boys were at least attempting to eat healthily, and with the smile she had given him, Stiles had been unable to refuse. He did not even realize that he was bouncing his knee until he felt someone place a firm hand on it to get him to stop, and he glanced over to Derek, who smirked slightly at him. "Relax," the other teen stated, smiling a little more when Stiles let out a breathy laugh in response.

"Relax? I'm totally relaxed," replied Stiles with a few nods. "Cool, calm, and collected; that's me."

"Your heart's racing." Derek arched an eyebrow slightly, that amused smirk tugging on his lips once again and Stiles let out a rush of air before he laughed softly again.

"Yeah, well, I dunno. Kinda hard to relax when people keep glaring at me like I stole Christmas." Stiles lifted his shoulders in a shrug as Derek pulled his hand away, something that Stiles wished he did not do. Which, was an odd thing in itself. Stiles was not a very touchy person, especially when it came to someone he did not know. He had no problem snuggling up to Scott or Isaac, someone he was _close_ to; but, he did not even shake hands with people he did not know. Stiles was never quite sure why; but, just the idea of touching a stranger nearly had him squirming in his seat.

"They'll get over it," Derek insisted with a nod before his attention returned to the girl sitting on his other side. Her name was Cora, Stiles had learned, and she was Derek's twin sister.

The next few classes after lunch were so uneventful and boring, Stiles almost fell asleep in history. Once that class was over, Stiles made his way toward the art classroom, the only class he was going to have without Scott, Isaac, or Derek in it with him. He was almost there when another student came up behind him near the small set of stairs that stopped right next to the art room door, not that he was aware because he was texting on his phone, and suddenly he found himself being _shoved_ forward, hard from behind. He did not even have time to gasp before he was falling down the few stairs, landing heavily at the bottom with his head smacking hard off the tile of the floor. "Be mindful of who you sit with, Stilinski," Stiles thought he heard someone say from above him, but the room was spinning too much for him to really focus on what was going on.

Stiles was vaguely aware of the sound of a teacher asking what was going on and the sounds of several students disappearing before there was a shout of someone needing an ambulance. Who needed one? Was it him? Stiles tried to ask, but the words did not seem to want to come out. He felt sick to his stomach and groaned when someone moved him. The brightness of the hall made his head hurt, and he felt really tired. "Stiles? Stiles, keep your eyes open, sweetie," his art teacher, Miss Penny said somewhere near-by.

He tried to listen, he wanted to listen because he knew that Miss Penny never steered him wrong. However, the need and want for sleep made his eyes heavy, and he could not keep himself awake any longer.

When he started to regain his focus, he felt cold and itchy, but that could have just been whatever blanket was draped over him. He did not like it. It was not his bedding. There was some kind of beeping somewhere in the background, and it took Stiles a few moments longer to realize it was a heart monitor. Hospital; the word came crashing into his consciousness. He was in the hospital, and the realization made his eyes snap open and he sat up quickly, which only caused his head to pound and the room to spin around him. "Whoa, sweetheart, lay back down," Melissa said as she rushed over to his side from where she had been standing near the door. She carefully helped the teen lay back on the bed, groaning as he moved. "No sudden movements, kiddo. You gave us all quite a scare there."

Stiles nodded faintly, wincing a little as he wet his lips. His mouth and throat felt dry and he could not find it in him to speak just yet. Melissa got him a small cup of water from the pitcher on the bedside table, using a bendy straw to help him drink some."There ya go," she said with a kind smile, reaching up to run a hand through his hair in a soothing manner, avoiding the knot on his head as she did. "Feel any better?"

"A little," Stiles replied in a scratchy voice. "What happened?"

Melissa laughed softly with a shake of her head and a faint smile. "They said you tripped on your shoelaces at the top of the stairs. You couldn't get your footing and hit your head. If you'd landed differently, you would have been fine."

Stiles' brow furrowed as she spoke and he tried to piece that into what he remembered. It did not make sense. He could _clearly_ feel two hands pressing on his back, and he heard the faint echo of someone speaking to him. The teen shook his head after a moment, wetting his lips once again as he looked to his step-mother. "Someone pushed me."

The laughter left Melissa's face immediately as she watched Stiles, her heart pounding loudly in her ears. That could not be right. Someone pushing Stiles meant that it was not an accident. That meant someone had tried to hurt one of her boys. She lifted a slightly shaky hand to run through her curly hair before taking a deep breath. "I should... I should get your father in here. Stiles, who would try to hurt you?"

The thing was that Stiles could not figure out who had pushed him; he just knew that _someone_ had, and that was the worst part. "I don't know."


	2. Chapter 2

Stiles was out of school for the rest of the week, much to his aggravation. He really wanted to go to school the day after he fell, but since he'd suffered a mild concussion, his doctor _and _Melissa refused. He spent only one night in the hospital but spent the rest of that week at home. Scott brought him his homework; and, both Allison and Isaac came by several times just to see him. Isaac was fairly subdued each time and he steered the conversation away from Jackson each time that Stiles tried to ask about what was going on between them. "Just be careful, Stiles," Isaac had said quietly as he hugged his friend tightly before he went home that first afternoon that he visited.

There was not much of an investigation what had happened to Stiles; after all, there were no witnesses, and Stiles could not even say who had been the one to push him. The official story was that Stiles simply tripped; John thought that by not giving the person who pushed Stiles attention that something like that would not happen again. Stiles hoped so, anyway. He had several bad dreams with a dark-sounding voice telling him to mind who he sat with, but that was not going to be enough to make the teen just stop spending time with his brother and friends. So what if some people were narrow-minded assholes?

Stiles brow rose a little when, upon arrival at the school, Scott was suddenly directly at his side, glancing around them every so often as if searching for a sign of a threat. "Dude," Stiles said with a sigh as they walked in the front doors. "I don't need a guard." He rolled his eyes fondly at Scott, pushing his brother away slightly while they walked toward their lockers. "Go get your shit and find Allison. I know you wanna."

"I can talk to Allison whenever," Scott reminded Stiles with a pointed look, making the other teen roll his eyes once again.

"You can talk to me whenever, too, dude. We _live in the same house_, in case you've forgotten." Stiles chuckled a little before gently nudging Scott with his elbow. "_Go_, I'm fine."

Scott looked unsure for another few moments, but eventually, he rushed off through the halls to find his girlfriend, who was on the other side of the school with her adopted sister, Cora. Stiles let out a soft sigh and took his head, glad for the first moment he got alone in _days_. It only lasted a few moments as he neared his locker when he heard someone a short distance behind him say, "Hey, Stilinski, you're back."

Stiles turned to see Derek Hale walking his direction, idly spinning a basketball in his hands. Stiles smiled a little and nodded as he shifted his backpack on his shoulder and they both started to continue the walk toward their locker. "Yeah, finally," he said with a sigh. "I was about to go crazy at the house. I mean, I love my family and everything but I couldn't even get two minutes alone."

"What happened, anyway?" Derek asked with a faint frown on his face as they stopped at the locker and Stiles put up the many books that had been delivered to him throughout the previous week that he would not need for his first class.

"I, uh, tripped... clumsy like that." Stiles lifted his shoulder in a shrug, pointedly not looking at Derek so that he could not see the expression on the other teen's face. He _knew _that Derek could hear the lie in his words. He just did not want to talk about it.

Derek frowned faintly once again, but did not press for answers. Instead, he just reached around Stiles to place the basketball on his shelf, grabbing his chemistry textbook. Stiles froze in place slightly as Derek grabbed his things, only turning to face the other teen when Derek took another step back from him. "Well, I'm glad you're okay."

Stiles smiled a little as he shut their locker with a slight nod. "Yeah, well, it takes more than a slight trip down the stairs to get me down for the count," Stiles replied as the two of them started to walk toward the chemistry classroom. They were about half-way there, Stiles pointedly ignoring some of the harsh glares from his human classmates that followed him throughout the halls (especially from Jackson and his little gang of friends; except Isaac, who smiled brightly at him with a wave that he returned), when Lydia Martin appeared seemingly out of nowhere, pushing her way between the slight distance between Stiles and Derek as she grabbed the later teen's arm, tugging him a little.

"C'mon, Derek. We'll get you a better lab partner today than _him_," she said with a slight sneer on her face that she had been known to have whenever talking to Stiles or one of the human students.

"You know, you're acting just like them, Lydia," Stiles stated with a scowl of his own, making her freeze in her steps and look at him with a slight glare while Derek just watched him with an expression that was equal parts amused and surprised.

"Excuse me?" she replied, her brow furrowing as she looked to the pale teen with frown folding her lips.

"You heard me." Stiles watched her for a moment, his own brow furrowed as he studied her for a moment before he gestured back down the hallway where Jackson was still leaning against his lockers. "Them. You speak to me and every human in this school as if we're beneath you, but you expect them to respect you. It's a two way street, sweetheart."

Lydia pursed her lips as she studied Stiles for another moment. A slight smirk tugged on her lips after a moment and she reached out to adjust Stiles' backpack straps on his shoulders. "You've got me all wrong, Stiles. I speak to everyone that way. Let's go." With that, she turned to walk toward the chemistry classroom again, her hair slipping back off of her shoulder as she strode forward determinedly.

Derek chuckled a little as Stiles simply stood there in slight shock for a moment, trying to figure out what had just happened. "I think she likes you," Derek stated, nudging Stiles' shoulder gently. "C'mon, we should follow her before she gets annoyed." He still could not believe that Stiles Stilinski stood up to _Lydia Martin_. There were not many people brave enough to do that, werewolf or not.

Stiles let out a slightly shocked laugh, as if he could not really believe his own actions as they started to follow Lydia to the classroom. "That's like? It felt more like intimidation," he replied as they walked into Harris' room. She gave them each a pointed look as they walked in before she glanced over to the station they had shared on the first day, as if demanding they both sit there. Stiles' brow lifted in surprise in confusion but neither teen asked as they took their seats just before Mr. Harris walked in.

* * *

Stiles was making his way to the cafeteria for lunch when someone stopped him by placing a gentle hand on his arm and Stiles turned to see Isaac standing there. Stiles smiled at his friend and laughed softly as he said, "What's up, dude?"

"Sit with me outside?" Isaac asked quietly, almost nervously. Stiles hated seeing his friend act like that, and he had a feeling he knew _why_ the curly-haired teen did; but, there was nothing he could do without proof of it.

After a moment of thought, Stiles nodded with a smile before jerking his head back toward the double doors at the end of the hallway. "Yeah, c'mon," he replied before they made their way outside where there were several unoccupied picnic tables for students to use on nice days. No one used them anymore, however; everyone was too busy playing standoff in the cafeteria. "So, you and Jackson, huh?"

"It's... complicated," Isaac responded as he pulled his lunch out of a small paper sack after they sat down, Stiles doing the same. "He's not... always an asshole. S'just... a mask. He's scared."

"Yeah, I figured. I mean... I can remember being friends with him in elementary." Stiles nodded a little as he opened his bottle of Cherry Coke. "S'long as he's good to you, and you're happy, I think it's fine."

"He is. He, uh... he gives me a place to stay when dad drinks too much." Isaac nodded a little, picking at the sandwich that he'd gotten out of his bag, not looking up at Stiles. "That's kind of how this whole thing started over the summer. I... didn't expect it, but s'nice. I really like him. Not... not him," Isaac gestured toward the school, "but _him_, the real him."

Stiles nodded a little in understanding, opening his bag of chips before offering some to Isaac. "Yeah, I understand that." Isaac mumbled a thanks after grabbing a couple chips and then Stiles grabbed some for himself. "Did you see that stupid debate with Victoria Argent last night?"

Isaac pulled a face at the memory but nodded a little with a heavy sigh. "Yeah, and what's worse is I heard they're actually _voting_ on a law that requires all werewolves to be registered and monitored closely for their actions from _birth_. It's like a registry of offenders, but they don't even have had to have done something wrong."

"S'bullshit," Stiles mumbled with a shake of his head before taking a drink of his soda.

The two of them spent the rest of their lunch period discussing the potential changes in the government that neither one of them agreed with. It was scary, in Stiles' opinion, to realize how close they were to a complete and total segregation of races. It was unfair, in his opinion, but he was just a teenager. People were not likely to listen to him. However, there were still adults out there who shared his point of view. The only problem was whether or not there were enough of them to vote against policies like the ones that Victoria Argent had been attempting to filter into their government for years.

After lunch, Stiles once again found himself being very bored in his classes. He nearly fell asleep in history once again; only Derek throwing wadded up papers at the back of his head kept him awake. Though he was thankful for it, he still turned in his seat and narrowed his eyes at Derek each time. The basketball players simply smirked in response every time. "Jerk," Stiles finally said to him as they left the classroom to walk to their locker. Stiles wanted to grab everything he would need to take home so that he could just take it to art with him, his last class of the day. "See ya later," he said after he got his things, moving out of the way so that Derek could get what he needed, waving as he started to walk off.

"Stiles, sweetheart, you're back!" Miss Penny said with a bright smile when the teen came into the classroom a few minutes later. She had her platinum blonde hair twisted up into various knots on top of her head, kept in place with brightly colored pins and elastics that matched her outfit of the day. She practically jumped up from her desk and went over to hug her favorite student tightly. Of course, he was more than just a student to him; Penny was his godmother, after all, having been his mother's best friend when she was still alive. She'd been maid of honor at Melissa and John's wedding and had a standing invitation to every family gathering at the Stilinski-McCall family gatherings.

Stiles chuckled a little and returned the hug before she finally pulled away, ruffling his hair fondly. "Yep, and 've got those sketch assignments for you," he replied, dropping his backpack onto one of the empty tables before digging out his sketchbook to give to her to check over.

"Good, good. Stiles, you can go ahead and grab your syllabus out of your cubby in the back and start the first assignment sheet," Miss Penny explained to the teen before taking the sketchbook over to her desk, setting it down. She waited until the bell rang to face the other students sitting in the class, including Lydia, Cora, Danny, Ethan, Jackson, and several freshmen, a bright smile on her face. "Alright, guys, we're going to continue our lesson on landscapes. Now, perspective is a bi-"

"Why's Stilinski doing whatever he wants?" Jackson interrupted from where he sat low in one of the chairs near the back of the room while Stiles read over his assignment sheet at the shelf that held all the art students' plastic tubs for their personal art supplies.

Stiles ignored Jackson with a soft sigh as he walked to the back shelf to grab the thick, almost card-stock like paper and watercolors that he needed. Miss Penny just smiled as she grabbed her favorite hot pink dry erase marker while standing up by the black dry erase board that spread across the width of the front wall. "Stiles is not in Art I, Jackson," their teacher explained. "He's independent study in Art IV, as well as being my teacher's aid this hour."

When several of the students, mostly the freshman, looked back toward him, Stiles simply raised his hand with a slight wave from where he was sitting at one of the back tables, bent over slightly as he lightly drew the base of his watercolor painting with a fine tipped pencil that did not draw very dark at all before focusing on his own assignment once again. Jackson scowled slightly but said nothing else as everyone faced forward again. "Now, as I was saying," Miss Penny said as she turned to start writing on the board. "Perspective! It's very important in getting your landscapes to appear as they should."

The class period seemed to fly by in Stiles' opinion, and soon enough the bell was ringing, just after Stiles hung his half-finished painting up on the clothesline that hung along the left wall to dry. "That's a great start, Stiles," Miss Penny said from her desk, where she was gathering everything that she would need to take home that afternoon. She would hang around for a while, go bother the psychology teacher, who was one of her best friends, and then eventually head home.

"Thanks," the teen replied with a smile as he finished gathering his things, glad that all the other students had already left. "I'll see you tomorrow, Pen. Oh! Melissa's making enchiladas Friday night, if you wanna join."

"Heck, yes, I wanna join! Her enchiladas are to die for."

Stiles rolled his eyes fondly with a smile and a laugh before he left the classroom so that he could head out to his Jeep to wait for Scott, who was most likely with Allison, milking the time that he got with her. When he got to the car, however, he found his brother standing there with Allison, both of them looking a little worried. Stiles' brow furrowed as he looked between the two of them as he said, "What is it?"

"We've got to go to the Hale House," Scott explained quietly, wetting his lips absentmindedly. "Pack meeting. I'll be home late."

Stiles nodded a little, looking over to where Cora and Derek were talking quietly with solemn expressions on their faces next to the car that the Hale siblings, and Allison, shared. "Yeah, alright, I'll tell Dad and Melissa." Stiles nodded a little again. He was used to Scott running off to pack meetings randomly after the Hale Pack took him in (much like they had Lydia, the twins, and Danny); but, something seemed different about this one. Scott was not smiling or excited about a run in the woods. Something was going on and Stiles wanted to know what it is.

"Be safe." Scott shot a pointed look to Stiles, who nodded in response before he got into his Jeep while Allison and Scott went over to where the Hale twins were waiting. They still had to go by the junior high and the elementary school to pick up some of the younger ones (Stiles never did understand how so many of them fit into that car) before heading out to the Hale House. Stiles watched them for a moment before he started the Jeep and took himself home.

When Stiles got home, both his father and Melissa were back from their shifts at work, and Stiles found them in the kitchen. The sheriff was making dinner while Melissa sat at the table, talking about her day at work. "Stiles? Where's Scott?" Melissa asked, breaking off from her previous conversation with a furrowed brow when she spotted her step-son in the kitchen doorway.

"Emergency pack meeting," Stiles explained as he walked over to set his backpack on the ground next to one of the chairs and sit down. "Scott said he'll be late. I think something's wrong."


	3. Chapter 3

"Scott didn't come home," Stiles said the following morning at breakfast. He bounced his knee as he idly twisted one of the napkins off the table to the point that it nearly ripped. Melissa sighed faintly and reached over to take the paper from the teen while John worked on making dinner for the three of them. "He _always_ comes home."

Stiles knew that his parents were aware of the fact that Scott had stayed over at the Hale House the evening before, but it did not change the facts that he was stating. Scott _did_ always come home directly after pack meetings. He would crawl into Stiles' bed and wake his brother up to tell the other teen all about them. Stiles did not like the fact that Scott had not come home. It could not mean anything good; Stiles just knew it. He did not sit still all through breakfast, something Melissa noted quietly to John after the teen left the house for the day as the sheriff ran a hand through his hair with a heavy sigh.

Stiles drove a little faster to school than he would most mornings. He scowled a little when he got to the school, only to find that the Hales were not there yet. With a sigh, Stiles went into the school and put his homework from the night before into his locker, most of his attention down the hallway, where Jackson's lackeys were milling about, looking lost and confused as Jackson was nowhere to be seen. Stiles' brow furrowed a little as he stood up straighter and looked more intently at the students in the hall. Jackson really was not around, which was so very unusual. Jackson was often one of the first students there, if only to mock the other students as they arrived.

Isaac was not there, either, Stiles realized once a few more minutes had gone by. The teen crossed his arms over his chest and slowly made his way toward the chemistry classroom just before the bell rang to signal that they were needed to go to class. None of the missing teens had shown up by the time Stiles took his seat; but, a few moments later, Lydia and Derek came into the classroom. They looked tired but healthy as they took their seats just before the tardy bell rang. Derek did not even so much as glance in Stiles' direction, so the teen did not bother trying to ask the other teen about the pack meeting the evening before. Jackson never did show up, but Stiles was not so worried about that. Knowing Jackson, his parents were probably just spoiling him with some surprise trip to Los Angeles or something.

The lesson that day could not hold Stiles' attention for a moment. He kept glancing at the clock, bouncing his knee with his foot on the bottom rung of his stool, tapping his fingers or toying with his pen as the time inched by. Half-way through the lesson, Stiles thought Derek glanced in his direction for a moment with a scowl and highly annoyed expression. However, Stiles did not look back at the other teen, as it could have merely been his imagination.

As soon as the bell to signal the end of class rang, Stiles jumped up and grabbed his things before rushing out of the classroom to go find Scott. He only made it a few hundred yards before he practically ran straight into his best friend, who tugged him immediately into one of the nearby classrooms that were not used that semester. "What is going _on_, Scott?" Stiles asked with a frown as he watched the other teen pacing the room, running both hands through his already unruly hair.

"It's bad, Stiles," Scott said exasperatedly. "I mean, _bad_. This is _so_ bad."

"_What _is?" Stiles crossed his arms over his chest, pushing aside his want to reach out and just grab Scott's shoulders to focus him and get him to answer. The last time Stiles had done that, Scott had (accidentally and instinctively) nearly broken Stiles' arm with a move that removed the teen's hands from his shoulders. Never again, Stiles had sworn to himself; not that Scott would really let it happen again.

Scott let out a heavy breath as he looked toward his brother, trying to figure out the best way to explain to Stiles what was going on with revealing things that he promised not to reveal. He would rather not get on Talia Hale's bad side, thank you. "I can't... fully explain," Scott replied with a slight pout and a furrowed brow. He hated keeping things from Stiles; it was something he avoided having to do at all costs. "Just... Stiles, you _need _to be careful, okay? Things are... shifting and it's not exactly in a positive light."

Stiles sighed heavily and rolled his eyes (hard enough that Scott could have _sworn_ his best friend was secretly a Hale). "That's not exactly informative, Scotty," Stiles stated with a shake of his head, reaching up to tug on his backpack strap so that it sat better on his shoulder. "Just... tell me what's going on at home."

"Where's Jackson?" Scott asked mid-nod, stopping the action with a slight tip of his head to one side, as if he had heard something in the hallway that had confused him. It probably had, Stiles guessed, since his best friend could hear those types of things, after all.

"Dunno; don't care." Stiles lifted his shoulders in a shrug, though the talk of Jackson did make Stiles remember that Isaac was not there, either. Now, _that_ was something that worried him. Stiles wet his lips and quickly took a moment to text his friend, asking him if everything was alright. He received a typical answer of being fine but sick with a disappointed looking smiley. Placated, Stiles left the classroom at Scott's side so that they could both head to English, which they ended up being late for.

Meanwhile, across town, Jackson sighed heavily as he set Isaac's phone aside, having responded to Stiles' text when it had caused the other teen's phone to vibrate on the bedside table. Isaac was still asleep, and Jackson did not want to wake him but he had known that if he did not respond to Stilinski, Stiles would come looking for Isaac. Jackson was fairly sure that the curly-haired teen did not want _anyone_ going over to his house anytime in the near future.

He glanced over at Isaac, scowling when he could clearly see the bruising on the other teen's slightly swollen face. He could clearly remember the night over the summer in which he had been wandering aimlessly around town, bottle of whiskey in his hand, and he practically ran right into Isaac, who was attempting to find a place to sleep for the night. His lip had been split and Jackson had _hurt _to see his classmate flinch away from him after Isaac had noticed the alcohol in his hand. Jackson had sobered up rather quickly after that, and though he had ignored the growing signs of what was going on at the Laheys throughout the years up until that moment, he made Isaac come to his house to spend a few days until the other teen had felt comfortable enough to go home.

Jackson sighed inaudibly and started to get up so that he could go downstairs and start some coffee, only to stop when he heard Isaac shifting on the bed behind him before the other teen mumbled, "Jack?"

"Yeah, s'me," Jackson replied quietly as he turned on the bed to face Isaac more, placing a hand on the other teen's arm with a gentle squeeze. "Was gonna go make some coffee."

"Stay."

Jackson idly wet his lips as he watched Isaac for a moment before he moved enough to lay down behind the other boy, draping one arm over Isaac's middle. Their fingers immediately tangled together, resting against Isaac's stomach where the t-shirt he wore had ridden up. Jackson was not entirely sure how they had gotten from Isaac's nightmare-filled nights of sleeping on the couch (Jackson could still practically hear his screams at times) to snuggling on Jackson's bed; but, if he was completely honest, Jackson did not mind the change at all. He liked having Isaac close, knowing that no one was going to hurt the other boy if Isaac was in his arms. Jackson rested his chin on Isaac's shoulder and the slightly younger of the two teens smiled to himself as he gently squeezed Jackson's hand.

For a few minutes, Isaac could let himself forget all about why he was over there at Jackson's in the first place. However, one wrong shift on the bed caused the bruising on his ribs to flame up and Isaac winced, pressing back against Jackson a little more in an attempt to shift out of the position that caused the flare in his injury. Jackson's brow furrowed a little but he said nothing as he gently squeezed Isaac's hand once again. "I'll make us some lunch if you wanna take a shower," Jackson said quietly after a few moments once Isaac's slightly pained breathing slowed to normal.

"Yeah, okay," replied the curly-haired teen, nodding a little without making any move to pull away from Jackson. He was not completely sure how he and Jackson Whittemore, of all people, had gotten to where they were; but, he would not change anything for the world, even if Jackson was an asshole whenever anyone else was around.

It took several minutes, but eventually the two boys got up, Isaac heading to Jackson's bathroom to use the shower, and Jackson downstairs to the kitchen. It was fairly routine by that point (something that upset Jackson more than he let on, even to Isaac), but neither of them commented on that fact when Isaac came downstairs in his own jeans and t-shirt with one of Jackson's hoodies on top of it. They did not comment on it as they sat on the couch to watch mindless comedies as they ate, nor did they comment on it as they lay down and then eventually fell back asleep there on the couch, neither one having slept much the night before.

Back at the school, Stiles made his way through the crowded hallways as he made his way toward the art classroom. He moved around a group of football players who were lingering near the hall that led to the gym and collided right into someone else doing the same from the other direction. Hands grabbed either of his shoulders to steady him faster than Stiles could even recognize the fact that he had lost balance. "Oh, hey, Derek," Stiles said with a slight smile as he took a step back so that they were not in one another's personal space any longer.

"Stiles. Are you alright?" the other teen asked, lifting a brow slightly as he watched the boy in front of him.

Stiles nodded a few times, running a hand through his hair once as he did. "Yeah, 'm good; just kind of..." Nervous, on edge, worried, confused; Stiles could think of a bunch of different explanations, though none of them fully explained just how anxious he really felt. He almost felt like an anxiety attack was starting to build, or a panic attack; but, he had not had either of those in such a long time. He hoped to keep it that way, if he was honest. So, he tried to keep himself as calm as possible.

The glare that Matt and some of the others in the hallway were giving him was not really helping him any, but he tried to ignore it. "I should go," Stiles said after a moment, not fully realizing that Derek had actually said something else to him. He simply pointed down the side hallway that he needed to use and started to walk toward it, leaving Derek standing there for a few moments longer before the basketball player started toward his own classroom. Stiles thought that Derek might have called his name, but the teen simply turned into Miss Penny's classroom.

After school, Stiles waited by the Jeep for Scott until well after most of the other students had left for the day before he finally texted his best friend with a heavy sigh, asking where Scott was. Scott replied rather quickly, explaining that he had to go over to the Hale House again, but that he would be home shortly. Stiles rolled his eyes but decided to take Scott's word for it and he started to drive home. Both his father and Melissa were working night shifts that evening, so no one was there when he arrived. He was not sure what to do with himself, filled with a nervous energy that practically had his skin vibrating, if that was possible.

He started to do some cleaning around the house (dishes and straightening the living room, which did not need it since Stiles had done that twice already in the previous few days) to keep himself occupied, focused on his tasks instead of on whatever it was that could be _so _important. Stiles did not like not knowing what was going on, but there was not much he could do at the moment. He would _make _Scott fill him in once the other teen got to the house, but until Scott actually got there, he would just have to speculate. Of course, that led to Stiles coming up with all types of possibilities (that rogue omega coming back to slash everyone up and make the Argents hate werewolves even more, an alpha pack starting shit, Peter Hale finally going off the deep end). To be honest, Stiles was not sure which one was the scariest thought.

It was after dark when Stiles texted Scott again, getting a quick reply that included profuse apologies, and Stiles hit his forehead on the freezer door in irritation before opening it to pull out a frozen pizza that he planned on throwing into the oven for himself. With a scowl worthy of note, Stiles pulled the wrapper off of the frozen food and started the oven only to freeze when he heard one of the neighbors dogs barking like there was some sort of threat around. Stiles shoved it aside quickly, telling himself it was probably just a squirrel. That thought only lasted a few heartbeats before the sound just suddenly stopped along with Stiles' breath.

That did not sound good in the slightest. Turning the oven off, Stiles grabbed his cell phone and slowly made his way toward the windows near the front door. After he moved aside the sheer curtain in the windows, Stiles tensed when he spotted someone just standing in the middle of the street a few houses down. If that was not ominous, Stiles thought as he dialed Scott's number, he did not know what was. The person seemed to be watching him, and Stiles found himself with two instant thoughts of action; he could either run out the back door or go out the front and see what the person wanted.

After worrying on his lower lip, scowling as Scott did not answer the phone, Stiles made his way toward the back door, intending to go to the neighbor's house so that he at least was not alone with some weirdo on the street. He hung up the phone and called Scott again as he stepped off the back porch, stilling when someone else started to walk toward him from the nearby tree line, loading a gun as they walked. "Scott," Stiles said irritatedly when his step-brother finally answered the phone; he wet his lips, looking at the few others that stepped into the backyard while he tried to keep himself as calm as possible, "that thing that you never told me. It was about hunters, wasn't it?"

"Yeah, why? Stiles, why?" Scott questioned, his voice rising a few octaves when the other teen did not answer him.

Scott heard Stiles gasp when the hunter pointed a gun at him, and he heard the gunshot go off, which caused Scott to start shouting into his phone, asking Stiles what was going on and if he was okay. Stiles squeezed his eyes shut, anticipating feeling some sort of immense pain from the gunshot; but, it never came. After a moment, Stiles opened his eyes and found that he had been shoved aside and was laying on the ground. Derek stood above him, gripping onto his right shoulder with a flash of gold eyes at the hunters. "Stiles, run," Derek insisted, hearing Scott calm down just a little on the dropped phone a few yards away when the other werewolf caught the sound of Derek's voice.

Stiles did not even have time to react before Derek drug him to his feet and they both started running, hunters close on their heels. Bullets were flying and Stiles could barely keep up with what was going on around him. Everything just blurred together as they ran. They were suddenly in the woods (at least it seemed suddenly to Stiles), and he fell forward with a sharp cry as a sudden burning pain spread up from his leg through the rest of his body. Stiles barely heard Derek talking to him, telling him something that was probably important before he completely lost focus of everything around him.

When Stiles came to, his brow furrowed and he looked around him a little. He was in what appeared to be an old shed of some kind from what he could see; but, he was sitting in dirt. Did that mean he was underground? Stiles was not sure. What he was sure of was that there was someone sitting right behind him, and after another moment, Stiles realized that he was leaning back against Derek Hale. Stiles started to ask something, but the question was replaced with a cry that Derek muffled with a hand as he shifted and an indescribable pain coursed through his body once again. "Shh," Derek said quietly into his ear. "Stiles, you've got to be quiet. Our families are looking for us; but, so are the hunters."

Stiles nodded a little, showing that he understood, but Derek did not pull his hand away. Stiles took a deep, shaky breath through his nose while glancing down to the source of the pain the wracked his body only to find that his jeans were ripped and bloody. Had he been _shot_? Stiles assumed that was what had happened to him, but he was not sure. A slight shudder ran along his spine, however, when the pain started to lessen for a reason that Stiles was not sure of until he realized that Derek's other hand was on his side where a hole had been ripped in his shirt. Derek was taking some of his pain, though he stopped when Stiles nudged him harshly in the stomach after noticing the other teen wince.

Hunters had _shot_ him; even the Argents did not go after _humans_, Stiles remembered his lessons on different hunters from Scott. The new hunters, it seemed, did not care about any code. Stiles was not sure what to think about that. He wanted to focus on anything else, like where they were, but when Derek finally pulled the hand away from his mouth, Stiles could not bring himself to actually ask anything. The words were just not there, though he did try to make himself say something quietly. Instead, he ended up slowly falling asleep, pressed close to Derek Hale.


	4. Chapter 4

Stiles winced as he slowly started to wake up, though he was completely unsure where he was, still feeling groggy and like he was in a fog. He was vaguely aware of Derek still sitting right behind him and that awareness did not change even as Derek's hand lifted to cover his mouth to muffle the sounds Stiles was not even aware he was making. Derek wondered not for the first time if Stiles had hit his head when he had fallen earlier, but he had not really checked. "Shh, Stiles," Derek said quietly once again, wincing as he took some more of the pain that the teen felt. "Just sleep. Help will be here soon."

The younger teen nodded a little, though he was not completely sure what he was agreeing to. He rested his head back against Derek's shoulder, though, and quickly drifted back to sleep. Derek was pretty sure as he stopped leeching the pain that Stiles' tiredness was directly tied to the injury. He was more focused on the faint voices he could hear outside the hiding place, however. He was still learning to enhance his senses abilities, but he was sure some of the voices seemed familiar. Whether they were friend or foe, he was not exactly sure. He remained unsure until he heard the hidden door to the underground room open and he let out a breath of relief. His mother was there.

Sure enough, Talia Hale came sweeping down the steps, her brow furrowed as she caught sight of Derek and Stiles in the corner. "Derek," she said softly, crossing the room over to the two teens. Talia gently took a hold of Stiles' chin and turned his head enough to see the cut near his hair line, glancing at the still-bleeding wound on his leg that Derek was putting pressure on. "Give him to me, Derek. We'll take him to the hospital."

Sheriff Stilinski came rushing down the stairs just then, pushing past a few of the betas that stood guard as he went. "Did you find my son?" John asked in a slightly shaken voice while Talia effortlessly lifted Stiles from Derek's arms. The relief the town's sheriff was more than visible as he nearly sank to his knees at the sight of his pale son in Talia's hold. "Is he...?"

"He's alive," Talia insisted as she started to walk toward the stairs. "Derek, are you hurt?"

Her son shook his head as he followed close behind her. "No. I mean, I got shot, but they were using _regular _bullets, Mom," Derek stated as he walked, keeping his eyes trained on Stiles with only a slight glance back at the sheriff as John followed after them as well.

Talia let out a slight hum, letting him know that she heard his words but was not exactly sure what to make of the information. If the hunters were using regular bullets, then that meant they had _known_ they were going after a human and they had meant to. It meant that things were growing far more dangerous than they had ever thought possible. Talia was sure that the Stilinski-McCall family was going to be in the most danger, if that was the case.

"Come," Talia said after a moment, glancing toward John with a look in her eye that showed every ounce of sympathy she felt for the man. "Let's get young Stiles to the hospital and waste no more time."

It was not said during Stiles' transport to the hospital, but everyone would feel better knowing that at least one of the adult members of the Hale pack would remain nearby throughout whatever stay at the hospital that Stiles might have. Once there, the doctors tried to look at Derek as well, spotting the bloody hole in his shirt; but, once the teen had yanked off the plaid over-shirt to reveal that there was no sign of injuries on his arms because he had healed, they left him alone. He did not bother putting the shirt back on, since he'd worn another underneath the plaid shirt. Scott scowled slightly at the fact that Derek remained there as the doctors worked on patching up Stiles' leg and monitoring for any brain injury, along with his sister Laura.

Scott did not mind Laura at all; he just was not all that fond of Derek for a reason none of them had yet to figure out. Derek paced a little while John sat next to Melissa, holding his head in his hands while she absentmindedly ran a hand over his back. Scott sat next to Allison, who wordlessly held his hand as they all waited for some kind of word on how Stiles was doing. It had been several hours since Derek and Stiles had gone missing, and he had lost a lot of blood.

It was after sun-up before Stiles got moved to a private room to rest, his doctor saying that Stiles would be back to full health in a few days. He may need some physical therapy for his leg, and some pain medication, but nothing permanent. John, somehow, convinced Melissa and Scott to go on home to get some rest, which eventually left himself and Derek Hale sitting in Stiles' room. Derek refused to leave, even though there was not really anything he could do there. He had been there when Stiles had gotten hurt and when he had fallen asleep; he was determined to be there when the other teen woke, as well. "Hale," John said tiredly after a few hours of sitting there, and he looked over at Derek as the teenaged werewolf shook his head.

"No," replied the teen with a tired, slightly scratchy voice. He was not going to leave, no matter who tried to get him to. He just... He needed to be _sure_ that Stiles was going to be okay. Derek was not sure why he was filled with such a pressing need to know that; but, it was there. That was enough for him.

Several minutes later, John got up, excusing himself to get some coffee from the cafeteria. When he got there, Melissa was already sitting at one of the tables, looking as exhausted as he felt. She obviously had not gotten any sleep despite having gone home. John pressed a kiss to the top of her head, sighing inaudibly before sitting down next to her. "Did you get any sleep?" he asked her quietly, taking one of her hands in his. When she shook her head a little, John pressed a kiss to the back of her hand. "We're going to be fine, Mel."

"Talia said what the hunters did... it's an act of _war_, John," replied Melissa with a shaky voice, blinking furiously to fight back the tears that burned her already red eyes. "We all know the Argents have been trying for a long time to get to this point, but we never thought it would be in our lifetime."

"I know." John sighed heavily as he ran a hand through his hair, not letting go of Melissa's hand with his other for a moment. His brow furrowed as he thought about everything that was changing, and everything that was likely to come soon. Maybe they should consider homeschooling the boys, at least until public school was safer. Or they could set up a safe-haven school, or _something_. John, for the first time in a long while had _no _idea what to do.

"John, you should go." Melissa's words were small, and the town sheriff almost missed them, but he sighed heavily in response and nodded a little.

"Yeah," he replied, glancing toward the door of the cafeteria, "I should get back to Stiles."

Melissa took a deep breath and shook her head, squeezing her husband's hand with a soft, sad laugh. "No, John. I mean, you should _go_. Take Stiles and just, get away from here. Erase your ties with the werewolves. You'll both be safe. Scott and I-"

"No," interrupted John, his voice stern and unwavering despite the intense fear he felt from his wife's suggestion to save himself and his son. "I am _not_ leaving you and Scott; Stiles won't either. You have to know that. I love you, Mel, and Scott is my _son_. Stiles and I are not going anywhere."

"At least you'd be safe!" Her voice became panicked and shrill as she turned to face the man she had married several years before. "John, please, think about it at least." Melissa took several breaths as her husband brushed his thumb along her knuckles, closing her eyes for a moment before looking back to him. "They shot at Stiles, John; _Stiles_. He's never done anything to _anyone_ and he's been here twice in two weeks."

"I'm not picking one son over the other, Melissa," replied John quietly with a shake of his head, causing Melissa to sink down low in her seat. The expression on her face was a mix of affection and fear that she felt deep inside. "We're going to get through this, together."

Melissa nodded a few times, taking a shaky breath before sighing inaudibly as John pressed a gentle kiss to her lips. "I love you," Melissa said quietly after a moment. "I'll be up to see you and Stiles after my first rounds, okay?"

"Okay." John nodded a little and pressed a kiss to his wife's forehead, determined to talk to her more about everything when they were in the comfort of their own home, before he got up and left the cafeteria with a coffee in hand.

By the time John got back to Stiles' room, Derek had finally fallen asleep in his chair. He had his legs stretched out in front of him, crossed at the ankles, with one elbow resting on the arm of the chair using that hand to hold his head up. He probably was not very deeply asleep, but the teen did not stir as John sat back down in his own chair. Derek looked a lot younger than John knew he was as he sat there, and the sheriff found himself feeling quite grateful for the teen. If Derek had not been at the Stilinski-McCall house, for whatever reason he had been there, Stiles may have died.

John's attention turned from the young werewolf in the corner of the room to his son when he heard a sharp intake of breath from the bed as well as the tell-tale signs of the other teen shifting in place. Stiles' brow was furrowed as he looked around the room, eyes squinted from how bright the room seemed to him. "Dad?" the teen questioned, his voice sounding almost broken as he felt a hand wrap around his.

"Yeah, I'm here, kiddo," replied John, nodding a little while he watched Stiles blink a few times and gain an awareness of his surroundings. "You're going to be just fine. The doctors said there's no lasting damage."

"What happened?" Stiles cleared his throat a little as the words practically got stuck, and he quietly thanked his father as the action caused the sheriff to get him a small glass of water from the pitcher on his bedside.

John sighed a little after Stiles took a few drinks, leaning up more with his help. When Stiles was settled back down, John sat down on the bed next to him, careful of the IV and monitoring wires. "You got shot in the leg by some hunters that were chasing after you in the woods. Derek Hale helped get you out of there." Stiles' brow furrowed once again as his gaze drifted over to where Derek was still asleep sitting in his chair. "He's not left since we got you here last night."

"Oh." Stiles absentmindedly wet his lips, not exactly sure what to think about that bit of information. Derek had stayed with him since he'd gotten hurt, when the other teen could have easily left him at any time. Staying with him was something that Stiles expected Scott to do, not Derek. "When can I go home? I want to go home."

John smiled at his son and leaned down to press a kiss to Stiles' forehead. "I'll go let the doctor know you're awake and we'll figure it out," John stated as he straightened up. He then moved over to place a hand on Derek's shoulder, squeezing it gently as he said, "Son, Stiles is awake."

A moment passed before Derek actually woke up, but he did and John smiled faintly before telling him that he was going to go get the doctor. Derek waited until John left the room before he actually looked over at Stiles while sitting forward in his seat so that he was nearly on the edge of it. "How're you feeling?" Derek asked in a voice that sounded as tired as he was.

"Tingly; but, I think that's pain medication," replied Stiles with a slight smirk that fell after a few moments. "Thank you, for, uh, staying with me and everything. You coulda just left."

Derek shook his head a little, absentmindedly running a hand over his face with a slight yawn. "No way was I just leaving you out there. You almost bled out. It... There was a lot of blood." Stiles, even though he did not know Derek all that well, could practically see the worry coming off of the other teen in waves as Derek thought back to the night spent in their hiding place. "It's just good that they found us when they did."

Laura Hale appeared near the door just before the sheriff and Stiles' doctor came into the room, making Derek smile faintly at Stiles before he moved over to where his sister was. Stiles' doctor went over the important details, that Stiles needed to rest his leg but not completely stop using it. He should do physical therapy and only take the pain medication when the pain was really bad. He could still go to school, as long as he continued to use the crutches. The man suggested getting a knee brace just to help, especially if he went back to school soon (the earliest he said Stiles could go should be Friday). It would be several weeks before Stiles would be able to walk without assistance, the doctor informed them. But, he was cleared to go home at any time. Laura and Derek took that as their cue to leave, and Laura led her younger brother out of the room without a word to the Stilinskis.

A visit with Melissa and a car ride later found Stiles and John at the house, where Scott was already waiting for them. "Penny's going to stop by later with a bunch of food," Scott told them as they all went inside before John and Scott started to set things up in the living room for Stiles to use for the next few days. He could sleep and relax down there, as it was closer to the bathroom than Stiles' bedroom upstairs was.

Sure enough, around six that evening, when Melissa got back from the hospital, Penny showed up laden down with pastas and other foods that were easily reheated, as well as a bunch of Stiles' favorite baked goods. The five of them sat in the living room and talked about anything that did not involve werewolves as they ate their supper of lasagna. "You can't pull them out of school," Penny said with a horrified expression when Melissa suggested it. The blonde woman shook her head violently and set her plate aside. "They want to disrupt daily lives, to make us change our ways and go into hiding. Pulling them out of school is playing into whatever game they're playing."

"But leaving them in school is putting them in danger," said Melissa with a faint frown as she wrung her hands in her lap until Stiles reached over and took hold of one of them with a gentle squeeze.

"Danger from who? Melly, _all_ of the teachers are supporters except one, but he's never around either of the boys. The students are vulnerable, confused. They have whatever views their parents do right now; but, if they stay in school, we have more of a chance of rallying the people who matter more than the adults, the teenagers who are going to shape the world next."

Stiles sighed softly, idly wetting his lips before shaking his head as he said, "I don't want to leave school."

"Stiles, someone pushed you down the stairs just last week, and now you were shot!" Scott said warily, eying his best friend as if trying to figure out Stiles' train of thought.

"That happened in my own back yard, Scott. Penny's right, though. If we just go into hiding, we're giving in, and I'm not going to do that." Stiles shook his head a little, gently squeezing Melissa's and as she squeezed his. "I'm going to school on Friday."

Friday morning dawned crisp and warm, the perfect day for the ending of summer. Fall was fast approaching and it could practically be felt in the air. The leaves were slowly starting to change and the days were growing shorter. Fall was Stiles' favorite time of year, and he could not wait. Scott drove him to school that day, and when they got there, the younger teen expertly got out of the car with the assistance of crutches. The story was that Stiles fell out of a tree. No need to inflate the hunters' egos with letting the truth out. It had been Stiles' idea.

Scott went to Stiles' locker with him and helped his friend get all the books he would need for his first class while Stiles leaned back against the wall across the hallway from the locker. Stiles' brow furrowed a little when he heard Scott groan and he almost asked the other teen what was wrong, but his attention was directed down the hall a short ways when he heard Derek say, "Stiles, what are you doing here?"

"What?" replied Stiles with a smirk and a soft laugh, glancing over at Scott as his brother shut his locker before looking back to Derek. "You think a little gunshot wound is going to keep me away?"

"Yes, actually." Derek's voice sounded exasperated as he held a basketball under one arm, walking closer to where Stiles was standing with a furrowed brow and an expression that read more of worry than of anger, though the edge to Derek's tone led Stiles to believe that anger was what the other teen was trying to portray. Scott had done the same and failed miserably. "Stiles..."

"No," Stiles interrupted with a shake of his head as he leaned it back against the wall and looked Derek in the eyes, "I'm doing this."

Derek sighed softly but nodded after a moment and he looked to Scott. "I'll help him with his things to chemistry so you won't be late for your class," he offered.

Scott looked between the two of them, clutching onto Stiles' books as though he were going to take them and run, before he sighed softly and handed the books over. "Yeah, alright. I'll see you next period, Stiles."

"See ya, Scott," Stiles replied with a wave before he watched his brother go down the hallway and meet Cora and Allison. "You don't have to do this, y'know. Scott was more than willing."

"I know."

Stiles watched Derek for a moment, neither one of them saying anything, before he nodded and pushed himself away from the wall. Stiles was not completely sure what he was doing, but he was going to see his decision through to the end. Somehow, though, having Derek there at his side made Stiles feel better about being there at the school, and he was not entirely sure why. He guessed it did not matter much as he took his usual seat next to Derek and the two of them got ready for the class to start. Whatever was going to happen, Stiles just hoped they were all ready for it.


	5. Chapter 5

"Stiles!" Isaac exclaimed as he came up to where his friend was eating lunch outside. "Where have you been?" The curly-haired teen's brow furrowed as he sat down on the bench next to the other boy, taking note of the knee brace that Stiles wore on top of his jeans. "What happened?"

"I'm _fine_, Isaac," he replied with a smile, reaching over to gently squeeze the other teen's arm. "I just fell out of the tree. Clumsy like that." Stiles sent Isaac a text then, telling him that he would explain later if Isaac came home with him after school. Isaac read the text and looked up quickly at Stiles before nodding once. Stiles frowned slightly as he reached out and took Isaac's face in hand, turning his friend's head enough to see the faint bruising still visible below Isaac's eye. "What happened to _you_?"

"Nothing, I'm fine." The words came out quick and harsh, making Isaac flinch at his own tone before sighing softly with a shake of his head. "I'm fine, Stiles. Promise. I've, uhm, 've been over at Jackson's the past few days." Isaac idly wet his lips, nodding a little as he absentmindedly played with the string of his jacket's hood.

Stiles nodded a little before smirking faintly as he reached out to tug on the hood of the jacket as he said, "Guess that explains why you're wearing Jackson's jacket."

Isaac froze at his friend's words, a pink tint immediately coloring his face. "It... I..."

"Hey, don't. You don't have to explain to me." Stiles shook his head as he offered some of his french fries to Isaac, who took one with a sheepish smile. To be honest, Stiles was just glad that Isaac had somewhere to go to since he was still so unwilling to go to the authorities about what his father was doing; and, they all knew that if anyone else told them, Isaac would just deny it.

Meanwhile, Scott sighed heavily just inside the doors of the school, looking out at Stiles and Isaac talking with smiles on their faces. He shook his head a little before looking to Allison. "I just don't get how he can just... _go on_ with his life as if nothing happened," Scott said, fighting his instinct to just go outside and continue to protect his brother that way. "Maybe my mom's right."

Allison's brow furrowed a little as she took Scott's hand in her own and asked, "Right about what?"

Scott idly wet his lips as he glanced back out at Stiles and Isaac. "She thinks that he and John should pack up and leave. They're safer away from here, away from me."

"Scott." Allison's voice was partially laughed as she gently squeezed Scott's hand, making her boyfriend looking back to her. "Surely you don't want that."

"I don't," Scott insisted, his voice wavering slightly though it continued to hold truth. "I just want him to be _safe_. He's my brother, and John's more of a father to me than my own father. I _want _them here; but, I also want them _safe_. Stiles got _shot_, Allison. That's not safe."

Allison sighed softly and pulled her boyfriend into a firm hug, wrapping both arms around his neck. She idly played with his hair as he hid his face in her shoulder. "It's going to be okay, Scott," she insisted quietly, nodding a little while holding him a little closer. "They're going to be okay. We all will."

Stiles found himself distracted in his art class to the point that he was not aware that only he and Miss Penny remained as he worked on his charcoal drawing. Stiles was not completely sure of what the subject of the drawing was, but he felt compelled to finish it. There were some trees and the moon, but that was all that Stiles could pick out so far. It was not the first time that he had gotten to the point where he just _drew_, letting his hand move without over-thinking it. Stiles always found it exciting, never quite knowing what he would see when he stepped back enough to see the whole picture. "Shh, Miss Penny said softly when Derek Hale stopped in the doorway and opened his mouth to say something to Stiles. "Let him work. He'll be aware of his surroundings again any minute now."

Derek's brow lifted in amusement and confusion, but he did not call out to Stiles like he had been going to. "Scott went to cross country practice," Derek informed Miss Penny with a slight nod before wetting his lips while idly spinning the ball in his hands with one finger on either side. "I'm supposed to make sure he gets home okay."

Penny pursed her lips a little, looking Derek over before nodding her head once in a resolute manner. "You're the Hale boy, aren't you?" she questioned, a faint smirk tugging up on her lips that were colored in red that day. Derek nodded slowly, his brow furrowing a little as he did, which only made the art teacher smirk a little more. She alone was aware that in several of the sketches that Stiles had turned in due to his absence from having been _shot_ (excuse Penny as she had a mini-mental freak out at the thought) had Derek somewhere in them. Whether or not Stiles had done it on purpose, Penny had not yet figured out. Derek, Melissa, and the sheriff took up most of Stiles' drawings, like normal; but, still, anyone else making it into the book, aside from the few of Isaac, was very rare. "Good. Make sure he takes some pain meds when he gets there. He keeps fidgeting and wincing." There was a pause in which Derek nodded, but Penny was too busy watching her godson. "I think I'll make him cookies tonight."

"You know him? Outside of school, I mean," Derek said, slightly in surprised as he moved to hold the basketball against one of his sides with one arm draped over it.

"Oh, yes." Penny smiled brightly and nodded rapidly enough that Derek was sure one of her barrettes was going to fly off. "I'm his godmother."

"Oh." Derek nodded a little, his eyes trailing back over to where Stiles was as the other teen took a few steps back, using only one crutch for assistance as he looked over the drawing he had finished.

Stiles tipped his head slightly to the side and that was when he realized that Derek Hale was standing at the front of the classroom near Miss Penny's desk. Stiles' brow furrowed as he looked over to where the others were supposed to be sitting, only to find that they weren't there. "Where is everyone?" Stiles questioned as he placed his charcoal on the small media tray on the easel.

"Sweetheart," laughed Miss Penny, shaking her head a little, "everyone's gone home. It's almost four." Stiles' eyes widened a little as he quickly looked to the clock on the wall, only to let out a heavy breath when he saw that she was right. He had not meant to get so focused on his work, but it had been a while since he had any _actual _inspiration for a big project. "Why don't you let Derek help you clean up?" Miss Penny made her suggestion as she moved away from her desk, walking over to where Stiles was as she grabbed his canvas. "And, I'll put this on display."

"You don't even know if it's _good_, Penny," Stiles said somewhat quietly, his face flushing a little as Derek walked to the back to help Stiles put up everything.

Penny made a dismissive noise and waved one of her hands. "It's _yours_. Of course it's good, sweetie," she replied before using some wire and tacks to make a easy hanger in order to place the drawing onto the blank wall opposite the door. "There. Wow, Stiles, this one really is amazing. One of your best."

Stiles mumbled a soft thanks, though Penny knew he greatly meant it; she knew well that he had never known how to take the positive responses that his artwork often brought, so she did not take it personally at all. Derek paused his cleaning to look at the piece, only to find him staring at it until Stiles nudged him with an elbow. The drawing was of the woods, Derek assumed there in Beacon Hills. Weaving in and out of the trees was a single, large, black wolf; and somewhere near-by was a person wearing a hooded jacket that was covering their face, a baseball bat in one hand as they walked in the same direction. "She's right, it is good," Derek said quietly, only loud enough for Stiles to hear.

"Uh, thanks," replied Stiles, denying the fact that his face turned red once again before he continued to tell Derek where everything went. "What're you even doing here?"

"Scott's at cross country; I'm supposed to make sure you get home alright." Derek grabbed Stiles' backpack, ignoring the way the other teen's brow rose at the action before Stiles grabbed his other crutch in order to actually walk out of there without falling.

"I don't need a babysitter."

Derek shook his head a little as they walked out to a car that Stiles did not recognize, probably one of the many that the Hale family was said to have. It meant that the whole thing had been planned, and Cora or Allison picked up the other Hale siblings. Stiles was not sure what he thought about that. "No, I know you don't. You didn't exactly want to walk all the way home, though, did you?" replied Derek, smirking a bit too much for Stiles' liking until the human _accidentally_ tripped up the werewolf with one of his crutches. "Whoa, hey. Cheater."

"No, you're the cheater," replied Stiles with a huff. "You didn't even actually fall over." Stiles frowned when Derek just grinned at him in response, though he did not argue as Derek opened the passenger side door for him. Derek took the crutches as Stiles sat down, and the other teen then took his stuff from the basketball player. It was then that Stiles realized that Derek's basketball was missing; until Derek put his backpack in the backseat, and Stiles caught a flash of orange from the zipper that was not closed.

The drive to the Stilinski-McCall home was filled with conversation, mostly about school and their shared history class. When they got to the house, Derek helped Stiles inside, setting the teen's backpack on the coffee table in front of the couch that appeared to be Stiles' temporary home, at least until he could easily move up steps. "You should take some of your pain meds," Derek insisted, ignoring the way that Stiles glared at him for the suggestion. "Where are they?"

"Kitchen," Stiles stated with a sigh and a nod, running a hand through his hair. "Dad keeps 'em on the table."

Derek nodded and placed his own backpack on the ground next to the end table before going into the kitchen to grab one pill and a glass of water. Derek remembered Melissa saying something about how he should never take two unless the pain became unbearable. That dosage was typically saved for right after a physical therapy session. "Thanks," Stiles said softly, taking the medication and glass from Derek. He hesitated for several moments before actually taking the pill. "Isaac should be over here soon." Stiles leaned over enough to place the glass on the coaster that sat on the coffee table, looking up to Derek. "I, uh, was wondering if you understood the assignment from Harris."

"Yeah," answered Derek, sighing as though it was the worst thing ever. However, he surprised Stiles by saying, "Did you need help with it?"

"Uhm, yes, please." Stiles nodded a few times, and Derek went to his backpack to pull his own chemistry book out of the limited confines of his backpack.

The slightly elder teen then sat down on the couch next to Stiles, careful not to jostle him any, and opened his book to the page they were on. "D'you have your worksheet?" Derek waited until Stiles got it out before he actually started to assist Stiles with the homework. Together, the two of them got the worksheet done (and Stiles actually _understood_ the process, which was not something he could usually do without re-teaching it to himself after Harris' attempts; he would not say it was Harris' fault, Stiles just did not get the way the man taught).

They ended up going on to work on the history homework (which was really simple because all the answers were in the book), and only got a few questions done before Isaac let himself into the house, as he always did whenever the door was unlocked. "Oh," Isaac said as he stopped near the doorway of the room. "I didn't realize you had company. I could..."

"Isaac, get over here," Stiles replied with a fond roll of his eyes, nodding toward the empty place on the couch while fighting the urge to yawn; his pain medication made him slightly drowsy, but he did not want to sleep yet. He still needed to talk to Isaac. "Derek and I were just working on some homework."

"I should go," stated Derek as he stood up, closing his history textbook while grabbing his backpack with his free hand. "I'll see you at school."

Stiles just kind of sat there, rather speechless as Derek left the house without so much as looking back. Isaac worried at his lower lip as he continued to stand there, feeling bad for making the other teen leave; or at least, that was what it felt like had just happened. Derek had not wanted to leave until Isaac had gotten there, anyway. "Isaac, really, come sit," Stiles said with a soft sigh, managing an honest smile in his friend's direction.

"What's going on, Stiles?" Isaac asked quietly as he walked over to sit down on the couch next to Stiles. Isaac wrung his hands in his lap nervously as he watched the other teen, trying to figure out what had actually happened to cause him to miss school once again.

"Someone shot me." Isaac's eyes widened and he gaped at Stiles, seemingly stumbling over his questions about what had happened and why. Stiles smiled slightly and squeezed Isaac's shoulder before he continued to explain everything that had happened the night the hunters showed up and immediately afterward.

Isaac sat there quietly, listening as Stiles explained what had happened. He felt terrible that all of that had happened while Isaac was hiding away from the world at Jackson's. Everything had been fine and he'd been actually happy while he was over there. Time with Jackson always made him feel better; but, his friend, one of his _closest_ friends had gotten shot and he did not even know about it until afterward. "So, why the story about falling out of the tree?" Isaac asked slowly and quietly, idly wringing his hands in his lap while watching Stiles.

Stiles laughed a little, lifting his shoulder in a shrug. "The hunters are still _here_ somewhere. Like I want to give them the satisfaction of the truth coming out. Nobody needs to know."

Isaac seemed to be struggling with the information, stilling his hands only to reach up and run his fingers through his hair. "Stiles, this is _serious_. What if they don't miss next time? You could be hurt. You could die!"

"Hey, it's going to be alright." Stiles reached over and took Isaac's hand in his own, gently squeezing it while waiting for his friend to calm down. "I'm going to be fine. We all will. We'll... we'll figure a way through this."

"Maybe you should stop sitting with them," Isaac suggested smally.

The other teen idly wet his lips before slowly shaking his head."I can't do that, Isaac. I can't just... There's _nothing_ wrong with them. They're great people; hell, Jackson's best friend since _forever _is a werewolf, Isaac. Just because there's a few deranged ones out there doesn't mean the entire race is evil. If that were true, we could say the same of humans."

Isaac's brow furrowed but after a moment, he nodded with a soft sigh. "Can I sit with you guys tomorrow?"

Stiles' face brightened with a smile, despite how tired they could both tell that the injured teen was growing, though Stiles was trying to deny that for as long as possible. "Yeah. That'd be... yeah. You can sit by me."

After a moment Isaac nodded a little and smiled softly over at Stiles. He could tell that his friend was wanting to change the subject to anything else but current events, so the curly-haired teen suggested putting in a movie. Isaac put in _The Avengers_, but Stiles still managed to fall asleep only ten minutes in. Isaac ended up dosing off there as well, sitting next to Stiles, the two of them leaning against one another. Neither one woke up when Scott got home, and he did not have the heart to wake them. Instead, he sat down on Stiles' other side and ended up falling asleep with them, leaning against his brother and using Stiles' shoulder as a pillow. That was how Melissa and John found them when they got back from work late that night.

Neither one woke the teens as they quietly made a late dinner, but knowing their boys, they probably had not eaten yet. So, Melissa did wake them once food was done. Stiles groaned a little, wincing as he shifted in place, a hand immediately resting on his injured leg. Scott absentmindedly curled a hand around Stiles' wrist, leeching some of his brother's pain from him as he started to sit up straight himself with a yawn. "Scott, stop," Stiles mumbled after a moment when the pain was at least tolerable.

"Dinner's done, boys," said Melissa with a smile once the drowsy teens finally seemed more coherent. "It's late, so bed after eating."

Isaac's eyes widened and his face blanched as a pure look of horror crossed his expression, his eyes immediately darting to the digital clock that at on the entertainment center. "Shit!" he exclaimed as he jumped up, wincing slightly at his outburst with an apologetic smile at Melissa. "Sorry, but I've got to be home. It's past curfew. I-I've got to get home."

"I can give you a ride, son," John said with a slightly furrowed brow as he walked into the living room, holding a plate for Stiles in his hands. "I'm sure he'll understand."

"N-no, thank you." Isaac shook his head rapidly, running a hand through his hair before letting out a shaky breath with a broken smile. "I'll be fine. It's not that far of a walk. I'll, uhm... bye."

Without another word, Isaac left the Stilinski-McCall household, leaving the four inhabitants quiet as the seconds ticked by. Stiles was the first one to break the silence, letting out a slow and shaky breath as he looked to his father. "I'm worried about him," Stiles said quietly before worrying at his lower lip. If the expressions of his family were anything to go by, they were too.


	6. Chapter 6

"_I propose that we __**do**__something_," the voice on the television belonging to Victoria Argent quietly spoke into the living room of the otherwise quiet and still Stilinski-McCall home. "_Our children's lives are in danger. These... __**abominations**__cannot control themselves. Oh, they can fake it; we have observed it. In the end, they're just another rabid dog. I have watched my husband's best friend go from being a kind, caring, family man into a mindless animal that nearly killed the man that I love. It is in their nature to be violent. How can we even begin to protect ourselves, to protect our __**families**__if we do not even know who is a potential killer._

"_We need some sort of... system, a controlled system with a list of potential threats. We need to know how to protect ourselves, to make sure that this_..." Victoria paused to gesture over to the screen that several disturbing issues of a family that had been slaughtered in their sleep. There were pieces of them strewn everywhere, as if an animal had torn them apart. "_Does not happen again. John Miller did this to his own family. These __**things**__should not be allowed near our children or our homes._"

Stiles was practically shaking in his spot on the couch as Melissa came in to hand him a cup of tea. "She's vile," Stiles mumbled before thanking Melissa softly as he took a tentative sip of the warm tea. "She's been suggesting _tagging _or _collars_, and-and grouping them in _camps_ or giving humans access to guns and wolfsbane bullets."

Melissa frowned as she sat next to Stiles. Neither one of them had been able to sleep after Isaac left, and the other two had gone to sleep. She wrapped an arm around Stiles' shoulders, and he leaned into the embrace, resting his head on her shoulder while continuing to watch as Victoria talked about the rising number of werewolves turning against humans. "And what do you want to bet that those humans baited the werewolves, or that they were simply protecting themselves," Melissa replied, idly toying with Stiles' hair using the arm that was around his shoulders, the other hand lifting her own cup of tea to take a drink.

Stiles nodded a little, but did not lift his head, resting his cup of tea on his good leg, fingers still wrapped tightly around the mug. After a moment, he leaned forward to place it on the coffee table before he rested back where he had been, head immediately resting on Melissa's shoulder once again. "I heard you talking to Dad earlier," Stiles all but mumbled, making Melissa's fingers still in his hair. It was only then that he realized she had been carding them through the strands again. "About us leaving."

"Oh, sweetheart," Melissa said softly, setting aside her own cup while turning slightly in her seat, enough that she could look at the teen easier. "You know that it's not that I _want_ you to go, right? I just... I want you to be safe."

"I know." Stiles nodded a little without lifting his head, smiling faintly as he gently squeezed her knee. "You're kinda stuck with us, though. Not going anywhere."

Melissa smiled softly, almost sadly as she pressed a kiss to Stiles' forehead. "I so wish that I could protect you and Scott from all of this. None of this should ever happen to anyone."

Stiles nodded a little in understanding, smiling a little at her. "We'll be okay, Mom."

The nurse inhaled sharply through her nose at the teen's words, pausing at the fact that he had called her 'Mom'. He had never done that before, and Melissa had never expected him to. She was his step-mother, yes, but she would have been fine being 'Melissa' forever. She understood that she would never replace Stiles' mother in his heart, but that did not mean that she would not care for him and love him just as much. "Yeah," Melissa replied, smiling softly at the teen in her arms before pressing another kiss to his forehead.

Meanwhile, across town, Isaac Lahey quietly slipped out of his bedroom window, clutching at his middle as he went. Thankfully, his room was on the first floor, which meant he did not have to do any climbing. The teen very carefully closed his window once again, hoping that his father was so deeply asleep under the alcohol that any noises would not be noticed. He then started to walk toward the Whittemore house, limping slightly as he went.

Isaac had only lifted his hand to ring the doorbell when the door in front of him opened quickly, revealing Jackson standing there. He had seen Isaac headed that way from his bedroom window and had come downstairs, hoping that the other teen was heading there. "Isaac, what the hell did he do?" Jackson asked as he carefully tugged the curly-haired teen into his house. Jackson immediately wrapped his arms around Isaac, and the other boy practically sagged against him. Jackson was sure that he was the only reason that Isaac was still upright.

Isaac's body shook with silent sobs as he let Jackson hold him, fingers twisting into the side of the popular teen's shirt as he tried to hold Jackson as close as possible. "I can't go back," was all that Isaac said in reply, his voice shaking just as much as he was. "I can't. He's my dad, b-but I can't."

"No, you're not going back." Jackson shook his head a little, absentmindedly running his hand over Isaac's back in a soothing manner. "Shouldn't have let you go back the first time." They just stood there for a long while, holding on to one another until Jackson heard the sound of his father's car in the driveway. Him and his wife had gone out for the evening. Jackson pressed a kiss to Isaac's temple without letting him go. "My dad can help."

Isaac nodded a little but did not move from Jackson's side. They walked over to sit on the couch, Isaac limping the entire way. The curly-haired teen sat pressed close to Jackson's side, ignoring the way it made his entire side hurt. Several moments later, Becky and Tom Whittemore came into the house through the doorway that led to the garage. Tom's brow rose when he spotted his son sitting next to another boy, one who was practically shaking as he sat curled up against Jackson's side. "What's going on?" Tom asked as he glanced at his wife before focusing on the teens once again.

"Dad, we need your help," Jackson said quietly, in a soft voice that was so unlike the teen that they knew.

"With what?"

"This is Isaac. He's... important to me. It's about his dad."

Both Tom and Becky frowned a little as they glanced at one another before Becky said, "We should probably get him to a doctor first."

Fall happened sooner than any of them really could fathom. The temperature seemed to drop overnight as the leaves changed color. Stiles' physical therapy was done and he could walk on his own. Sometimes it still hurt and the knee brace was still used occasionally. He would not be playing lacrosse that year. Isaac moved in with the Whittemores after his father was arrested; Stiles had spent an entire week over there with his friend after the arrest was made. After that, there was a whole lot of nothing that happened; and then, all at once, everything changed.

Stiles sat outside on one of the picnic benches during lunch. It had been all over the news that morning; two southern states had passed anti-werewolf laws that would require all werewolves to be registered and to live in special compounds. Victoria Argent flew out to Georgia for the opening of the largest one there.

There were _raids _in the middle of the night, special members of the police forces that took werewolves from their homes. Families were separated and human members of packs were put into the system if they were underage or into separate compounds where they would learn about the supposed dangers they lived with. Stiles let out a breath that was more shaky than he was comfortable with, dropping his phone aside on the table, having been following updates on the story through it. "This can't be happening," he mumbled to himself, running his fingers through his hair. His hands were shaking, he realized as he lowered them to rest on his lap.

His chest tightened, and Stiles swore his temperature shot up enough that sweat beaded on his face. It was not the time or place for a panic attack, but Stiles could not really stop it either. The teen grabbed the edge of the table in front of him, struggling to breathe through the weight and pressure and tightness of his throat. Stiles thought he heard someone saying his name, but it sounded muffled, as though there were several walls between him and the other person. After what felt like hours, Stiles felt a hand on his shoulder, and he flinched away from the touch. "D-don't," Stiles gasped out as the person pulled their hand away and sat down next to him.

"Stiles, it's okay," the person said, and Stiles slowly came to the realization that it was Derek sitting next to him. "You're okay, Stiles. I need you to breathe, okay?" Derek was completely unsure what to do with the other teen. He had heard Scott talking to Talia about how Stiles used to get panic attacks, but Derek had never _seen_ one. He quickly texted Scott, telling him to get out there. "Stiles, just... I don't know, relax."

Stiles laughed bitterly, the sound more air than actual laughter. His grip on the table tightened, though he did try to focus on regulating his breathing. He closed his eyes, focusing on clenching and unclenching his fingers, then the muscles in his legs. He let out a heavy, slow breath just as Scott came rushing out of the school, running over to where Stiles sat next to Derek. "Stiles! What's-?" Scott tried to ask, resting a hand on Stiles' shoulder, running the hand along the other teen's arm in a repetitive manner.

"It's starting, Scott," Stiles said, his breath coming out shaky but slow. "They're splitting up _families_. They're... it's raids on homes while they're asleep, collars and registry. What if we're next? There's _five _states already in the span of _days_."

Scott shared a glance with Derek, neither one of them quite sure what to say. His fears were valid, something they all worried about. "We're going to be okay, Stiles," Scott said softly, calmly though with a hint of strong belief. Things would work out in the end, they had to.

Stiles let out a forcefully slow breath, closing his eyes and nodded. His eyes opened when he felt someone gently squeezing his leg and he looked over at Derek, whose hand rested near his knee as it had on the first day of school in the cafeteria. He smiled a little before looking over at Scott. "This is really bad, though, right?" he asked quietly, not missing the look that Scott shot at Derek. "No secrets." Stiles punched Scott in the arm, narrowing his eyes a little. "I'm deep in this shit already, so... No secrets."

"Yeah," Scott agreed with a heavy sigh, wetting his lips before nodding a little. "Talia is urging a pack meeting tonight once I get off of work at the clinic." Stiles nodded a little as well, not even realized he had let go of the table with one hand and rested it on top of Derek's until the other teen gently squeezed his fingers. "John and Mom will both be home sometime after five, so you shouldn't be there alone for too long."

"I can come over and work on Harris' homework with you after school, if you want," Derek offered, making Scott visibly relax at the thought of Stiles not having to spend _any_ time alone. The teen nodded in response, but did not say anything. Stiles knew that if he spoke, he would only end up bringing the news up again and freaking himself out once more. It was going to be a long day.

By the time school was let out that afternoon, Stiles had been talked down from several panic attacks before they actually occurred. If Scott was not at Stiles' side, then Derek was. Derek drove Stiles home while Scott headed to work. Neither teen really spoke in the car, nor once they got to the house past what needed to be said to get the homework done. It was easier than Stiles had anticipated, being that the homework was from Mr. Harris. He very much appreciated Derek's help, however, knowing that if he had been there alone, he never would have gotten it done.

A conversation about lacrosse in the spring season (Derek did not play and he did not understand why Stiles did) eventually broke out, and Stiles distracted himself with that and the straightening up of the living room. That was until Derek stilled his hands by taking each one in one of his. "Stiles," Derek said with a faint smile. "Stop. You're okay. Everything's going to be fine. We're going to... figure something out. They can't just... get away with this. It's _wrong _and I'm sure more people will see that than will agree with the actions of those states."

"What if you're wrong?" Stiles asked smally, keeping his gaze focused on where his and Derek's hands were joined. "I can't lose them, Derek. They're my family. I..."

Stiles broke off when Derek gently tugged him forward by his hands in order to hug him close. Stiles pressed his face into the other teen's shoulders, wrapping both of his arms tightly around Derek. The slightly elder boy could feel the other practically shaking in his arms, and Derek had no real idea what to do. So, he just stood there and continued to hold the other teen until Stiles pulled away with a slight sniffle, wiping at his face with the crook of his elbow. "I'm sorry," Stiles said with a soft laugh. "I'm being ridiculous."

"You're being _scared_. It's understandable." Derek, himself, would probably have one of those moments once he got back home with his family. They were all potentially in danger, after all. Derek had no idea if what was happening to those states on the other side of the country would ever become an issue for them, but he knew his mother well enough to know that she would be staging some kind of counter-measure. The world was changing, fast and in a terrible manner. Derek just wished it was easy and all he had to worry about was how to tell a crush that he liked them.

"The hunters have declared war, and now this? How is it even _constitutional_? I mean, did the national government just give the states right to imprison who knows how many of their occupants at the state's discretion?" Stiles was speaking more to himself than Derek at that point, trying to wrap his mind around just how the states could get away with their actions. He knew that there were potential werewolf laws at the national level; but, last he heard, there was no decision on them one way or another.

Derek sighed and finally stepped back from Stiles, running a hand through his hair. "The national government is staying out of werewolf control issues," Derek said softly, which only made the knot in Stiles' stomach tighten at the information. "Mama said that the states are divided. There's a few she believes will _never _okay something like what is happening in Georgia. We may relocate there if it seems California will join them. It's what she's going to discuss tonight. Your family would be welcome to go with us, too."

Stiles nodded a few times, wringing his hands in front of him until Derek placed a single hand on them, stilling the action. "I need to think about something else," Stiles said softly with a sigh, closing his eyes for a few moments. "Can we put on a movie?"

The two teens ended up sitting down and putting in the first _Lord of the Rings_ movie, though neither of them really paid attention to it. They spent more time talking about school, about Isaac living with Jackson (something Stiles was still kind of unsure about, but Isaac seemed happier anyway, so that was good), about Scott and Allison, and anything else that came to mind that did not involve the way that people were handling the (highly unnecessary, in both their opinions) werewolf control being implemented.

After a while, Derek tensed when Stiles absentmindedly rested his head against Derek's shoulder, something he always did with whoever he was watching television with as he sank down lower on the couch to get comfortable. Derek slowly relaxed, a small smile on his face as he watched the movie on the television screen. Neither one of them moved until they heard the sounds of Melissa and John coming in through the front door. "I should head home for the meeting," Derek stated.

"Oh, yeah," replied Stiles, nodding as he ran a hand through his hair and sat up. "I'll see you at school tomorrow, then?"

Derek smirked as he was known to do while he stood up and gathered his school things. "Yeah, I'll see you there, Stiles."

The younger teen nodded with a soft sigh and saw Derek to the door before he went into the kitchen, where Melissa and John had gone to. "Scott's going to the Hales' after work," he stated, taking the seat next to Melissa before grabbing her hand in his with a squeeze.

"We know," replied Melissa, smiling softly at her step-son before pressing a kiss to his forehead. "Scott told us; he also mentioned that you almost had a panic attack at school."

Stiles worried at his lower lip and nodded a little, sighing softly as he ran his free hand through his hair. "It kind of... started, but Scott talked me down. I just, I dunno... everything that's going on. I freaked. I mean, that could be _us_."

"It won't be," John insisted with a slight shake of his head, smiling warmly at his son and wife while getting them each a glass of water. "And now is not the time for such worries. What do you want for dinner, kiddo?" The threat of everything continued to loom in the air, and they all knew that it would come up again that evening whenever Scott got home. Until then, however, the sheriff was determined to make the evening as normal as possible.


	7. Chapter 7

Scott quietly shut the door behind him when he finally got back to the house. It was well after midnight, and he fully planned doing like he would usually do. He would climb into Stiles' bed, laying next to his brother, and tell the other teen all about the meeting. There were to be patrols every night by the adult werwolves in the pack, the students would continue to go to school with their heads held high. Nothing would change past them being more on alert. If it even seemed like California was going to pass the werewolf regulation laws, they would leave and go to a safe haven in a near-by state. Talia suggested they all have the necessities packed and ready to go, just in case. He would tell his parents in the morning, or that was his plan until he walked past the living room and saw both his mother and John sitting up on the couch, watching the news quietly.

So, he went in there and sat down on the floor in front of the couch facing them. He told them in detail about the meeting, and how Talia would not disclose to _anyone_ where the safe haven was, just in case there were some people who were untrustworthy around. Scott had sworn her eyes had landed on her younger brother, if only for a moment. Neither John nor Melissa seemed to be too thrilled with the plans of action that had been detailed, but they did not really see much else that could be done. Rebellion was staged quietly and a safety plan of getting everyone out was the biggest plan. Rebellion could happen after they were all safe. Melissa and John did not need Scott to say that Talia was including them in those who would leave if it became too dangerous; that was a given, after all.

After several more minutes of discussing everything, Scott made his way upstairs to Stiles' bedroom. He quietly walked into the room, but stopped when he noticed that Stiles was not still on his bed. The other teen's face was scrunched up as if he was in pain, one hand gripping the sheet twisted around him tightly enough that his knuckles were white. Whatever Stiles was dreaming about was no good. Scott quickly rushed to his best friend's side to try to wake him up, but before he could even get to Stiles, the other teen sat up on his bed and started screaming. "Stiles! Stiles, it's okay," Scott insisted, grabbing Stiles' shoulders as he sat down next to the other teen on the bed.

John and Melissa came rushing into the room as Stiles stopped screaming, slowly realizing where he was and what was going on. His breath was a little too quick for Scott's liking and he could feel the other teen shaking underneath his hands. It had been several years since Stiles had woken up in a panic attack. John walked over to the bed while Melissa said something about getting Stiles some water before she rushed downstairs. "Stiles, son, you're okay," John said softly but in a firm manner that left no room for argument. "Try to count for me."

Stiles nodded a little between panted breaths, gripping on tightly to Scott's arm and one of his father's hands. He forced a breath out with each number that came out broken and shaky until he could finally breathe steadily and slowly. He was still shaking, but not like he had been, and at least the room no longer felt like it was spinning. "Sorry," Stiles said in a raspy voice before smiling softly at Melissa in thanks as he took the glass of water she offered him.

"What happened, kiddo?" John asked after Stiles calmed down some more.

The teen worried at his lower lip and shook his head a little. "I don't really remember," he said, though it was a lie and based on the way Scott frowned, his brother knew that.

Scott did not call him on it until they were alone, however, but Stiles still refused to tell Scott what had happened. He did not want to tell the other teen about having watched as his family was slaughtered, and most of the Hale family, including Derek. He did not want to think about it, and instead, he listened as Scott told him the different courses of action. Scott was going to pack his bag the next night, and he urged Stiles to do the same; just in case. Stiles nodded a little, running his fingers through his hair. He was not sure what he was going to do; but, he figured that agreeing would keep Scott from looking at him sadly again. "Hey, uhm, thanks for letting me know about everything," he said with a faint, though saddened smile. "I think I'mma try to get back to sleep, though."

"Yeah, alright," replied Scott with a nod. He fiddled with the string on his hoodie for a moment, watching Stiles before asking, "D'you want me to stay here?"

The slightly younger teen let out a heavy breath. He was not sure. He always felt better knowing his family was close by, but he would also not want Scott so near if he had another nightmare. The last thing he wanted was to wake anyone else up with how late it was already. After a moment, Stiles shook his head a little. "Thanks, but nah. I'll be fine."

"Okay. Actually try to sleep, yeah?"

Scott smirked a little as he fondly ruffled Stiles' hair despite the other teen's groan of protest. "Yeah, I will. Night, Scotty."

The next morning, they did not talk about Stiles' nightmare, nor did he tell them that he had not gone back to sleep. Instead, he acted like he had just woken up as he shuffled downstairs for a breakfast of his favorite type of flavored oatmeal while Scott had a bowl of cereal. Once he was done eating and he'd said good-bye to his dad who had gone on to work, Stiles went upstairs to get ready for school. He simply ran a hand through his hair, not caring about it past that, after tugging on his hoodie for the day. Then, he grabbed his backpack and waited for Scott downstairs.

Once they were both ready, the two teens headed out to the Jeep. Stiles winced a little as he hopped into the car, the action causing his leg to hurt a bit more than what was comfortable. The look Scott shot him let him know that his brother was well aware of the fact he was trying to hide and deny the pain he was feeling. "You working tonight?" Stiles asked, putting his focus on driving instead of the way that his leg continued to bother him. Apparently not sleeping very still was not a good thing. Stiles noticed Scott reaching out to place a hand on his arm, but the younger teen flinched away before contact was made. "Don't."

"Stiles..." Scott said with a sigh, brow furrowing as he watched his best friend. "You're hurting again."

"I'm fine," insisted Stiles with a resolute nod. After a moment of Scott just staring at him, Stiles sighed heavily, turning onto the road that would take them to the school. "Just... I'm fine. I can handle this. I _need _to handle things on my own."

Scott seemed reluctant to agree, but after another moment, he did. He wanted to be able to help the other teen, but if Stiles really did not want it, he was not going to _force _anything. "Yeah, I am working after school. Allison's giving me a ride, so you don't have to wait around."

Stiles nodded a little and let out a breath he did not even realize he had been holding. The rest of the ride to the school was quiet, save the music playing quietly on the radio. Once they got to the school, they made their way inside and Stiles took a deep breath, readjusting his backpack straps on his shoulders. He did not want to be there, but he did not really have a choice. He would just have to fake it like nothing was wrong. They'd not made it very far into the building when Scott caught sight of Allison, making him smile in that dopey manner that Stiles often teased him for. He was about to tell Scott to go on when he heard Derek behind him say, "Hey, Stiles."

He stopped and turned to see Derek looking at him with an expression that seemed to try to be neutral while seeming more concerned than anything. "Hi," Stiles replied with a tired smile, turning to tell Scott he'd see him later before the other teen went over to talk to Allison.

"Are you okay?" Much like with the look on his face, Derek could not quite keep the concern out of his voice when he spoke; it made Stiles smile slightly.

With a heavy breath, Stiles lifted his shoulders in a quick shrug. "Sure." His answer was quick, neutral to a point that it was not exactly a lie but it was not fully the truth, either. School was not the place to talk about everything that was bothering him, though. The last thing he needed was the wrong person overhearing. Derek seemed to understand that without Stiles having to elaborate any, if the nod Stiles received in response was anything to go by, which he was definitely thankful for. "Are you busy after school?"

Derek shook his head at the question as he and Stiles started to walk over to their shared locker so that Stiles could put up what he did not need. "No. Wanna work on Harris' homework again?"

"Yeah, I don't get the words that come out of his mouth. It's like gibberish or something," replied Stiles, grumbling slightly under his breath about stupid teachers as he put his unneeded textbooks into his locker. "Do you ever take anything home? I mean, how come you never have stuff when I see you?"

The other teen chuckled, idly spinning the basketball in his hand, rolling one of his shoulders in a shrug. "I come in early. Practice, running a bit."

"Oh, yeah. You're Mr. Basketball Star. I almost forgot." Stiles smirked a little as he spoke, turning to face Derek while stepping out of the way so that the other teen could grab his things for chemistry. "Season doesn't start until the spring, yeah?"

"Mmhmm. D'you play?" Derek shut the locker door once he had grabbed what he needed, shoving the basketball into the locker as well.

Stiles laughed with a shake of his head, lifting one hand to run through his hair a couple of times. "Nah. I'm more of a lacrosse person; er, I was."

Derek winced faintly as he and Stiles started to walk toward their classroom as the bell rang. He had almost forgotten that Stiles would not actually be playing lacrosse that year because of his leg. Sure, he was doing better; but, his range of motion was still fairly limited and the strain of a game would be more likely to add to the damage. "Sorry," Derek said, smiling faintly as they walked into Harris' classroom.

As Derek and Stiles took their usual seats near the front, Isaac and Jackson sat at their station near the back. Both teens looked exhausted, sitting a little farther apart than usual. Stiles made a mental note to question Isaac about it later. Knowing Jackson, they had probably just gotten into a fight over something stupid and was being a baby about it. Stiles did not even care that his thoughts were not very nice; Jackson was not very nice (to anyone that was not Isaac, anyway). So, fair was fair. Stiles' focus was so far from school that day, even Derek's usual attempts at getting him to pay attention (which, when did that become a normal thing that Stiles did not even _mind_?) did not do anything to help.

At lunch that day, Stiles basically just sat there and poked at his food, laughing half-heartedly when Aiden shared a joke with the table. It seemed to go unnoticed, which Stiles was thankful for. He did not want weird looks or questions. Isaac sat with Jackson that day, which Stiles was also thankful for. Isaac would have called him out on his acting, after all. However, as Stiles watched Isaac sitting at Jackson's table, he could tell that his friend was not very happy. Isaac was not talking with anyone, sitting kind of low in his seat while not even touching his plate.

Stiles did not sit there for too long before he got up and went over to where Jackson and Isaac sat. Ignoring the glare that Jackson sent him, Stiles smiled at Isaac and gently tugged on his arm. "C'mon," Stiles said, "let's get outta here."

Isaac seemed to debate his options, but after a moment, Isaac got up and followed Stiles out of the cafeteria. "Are you okay?" Stiles asked as they kept walking past the picnic benches outside. Stiles was not going to sit through one more hour of school. He did think ahead enough to shoot a text at Scott, and then sent one to Derek asking if the other teen could bring his homework if he was still coming over later.

The curly-haired teen wet his lips and shook his head with a shrug as he sighed and sank down low in his seat while Stiles started up the Jeep. "Jackson and I have been fighting," he said quietly. "He doesn't like that I keep hanging out with you guys. I know... I _know _he's just worried; but, he's being a dick."

"Of course he's being a dick," Stiles replied. "Danny may have been his best friend, but he still comes from prejudiced parents. He's going to be stuck on those thoughts, and, well... you know the company I keep."

"Doesn't give him right to talk shit." Isaac scowled as he crossed his arms over his chest. He was so very thankful for Jackson and the other boy's parents for giving him a place to live, a way to get away from his father. But, there was no way he was just going to let Jackson talk crap about one of the few people he was actually close to. "I don't think he'd care if it was just _Scott_, but..."

Stiles sighed heavily and nodded. While he did not agree with Jackson's point of view, it was not one that surprised Stiles any. After all, Jackson knew that even as a werewolf that Scott would have to be pushed _hard _before he so much as hurt a fly. "At least he worries, I guess." Stiles shrugged a little, reaching over with one hand to squeeze Isaac's arm before grabbing a hold of the steering wheel again. "Still, do I need to teach him a lesson on word choice?"

Isaac laughed softly, resting his head back against the rest behind it. "Yeah, maybe." Isaac idly wet his lips again, glancing over at his friend while Stiles got them even closer to the Stilinski-McCall home. "What about you? Are _you_ okay?"

The shorter teen groaned a little at the question as he pulled into the driveway, not surprised to see Melissa's car out front. She had an earlier shift, after all. "That's more of a difficult question," replied Stiles. He would probably explain later, but for the time being, he and Isaac were more focused on going inside and avoiding being scolded by Melissa. However, the scolding never came. She understood the need to get away from all of the pressures at the school, especially for Stiles after his hectic sleep attempt the evening before.

The two teens sat in the living room talking with Melissa, discussing the plans from Talia's resistance including the possibility of running if things grew that dire. Time seemed to flow quickly as the three of them talked, and before any of them realized, it was sometime after school had been let out when the doorbell rang. "I've got it," Stiles said as he got up from the couch, going over to answer the door. "Oh, hey, De- Is that blood?"

Derek blinked and glanced down at himself, only then realizing that there was a blood pattern across the front of his shirts, jeans, and probably on his face and neck as well. "Oh, yeah," he replied quietly before quickly looking back to Stiles. "I'm fine. I'm, uh... actually here to talk to Isaac. Blood's not mine; it's Jackson's."


	8. Chapter 8

Stiles just stared blankly at Derek for a few moments before he pushed Derek back away from the door and stepped outside onto the porch, closing the door behind him. "What do you mean it's _Jackson's_?" Stiles all but hissed at the other teen. "What happened?"

"It'...There was an attack," Derek explained slowly, carefully choosing his words. "He's... He'll be fine, but he's asking for Isaac so Mom sent me here."

Stiles' face paled a little. Talia was involved, that meant one of two things. Jackson was attacked by a hunter thinking he was a werewolf, or... well, either way it was not a good thing. Stiles nodded slowly, running his fingers through his hair. "Yeah, okay. Alright. Uhm, yeah, let's go get Isaac, then."

With a soft sigh, Stiles led Derek inside and Isaac's brow lifted when they walked into the living room. "Why d'you have blood on you?" Isaac asked Derek before darting his gaze between the other two teens, both of whom looked worried about something. "What's going on? Stiles?"

"We... we have to go, Isaac," Stiles answered, wetting his lips absentmindedly as Melissa came into the room. "Jackson's hurt, and... well, he's asking for you."

The color completely drained from Isaac's face, and he looked as though he was going to be sick; but, he nodded and stood up. "Yeah, where is he?"

Melissa squeezed Stiles' shoulder gently as the teens started to leave the house and he smiled faintly at her before they actually left. No words were said, Melissa did not feel they needed to be. She knew Stiles would be back as soon as he could. None of the teens said anything either as they got into the Hale twins' Camaro and Derek drove them out to the Hale house. "Is he okay?" Isaac asked Derek in a small voice as they pulled into the long drive.

"He will be," answered the slightly older teen honestly, nodding a little while glancing at Isaac in the back seat through the rear-view mirror before looking to the road again.

"What happened?" Isaac's voice sounded shaky in a way that made Stiles want to climb into the back seat and hug his friend, but he would settle for hugging him once they got out of the car.

"A pack from upstate has decided to... well, if we're to be treated like animals, they said they'll give the humans animals," explained Derek quietly. "They've been attacking random humans up and down the coast. One of them got to Jackson after school. I tried to help, but... We got him to the house as soon as we could, and Mom... well, there was nothing else we could do, so she offered him... y'know."

Isaac nodded, worrying at his lower lip. "He said yes." There was no question to the statement. If Jackson had an option to live or die, he knew that the other teen would do what he could to keep living. "It took."

"Yeah. He's gonna stay with us for a while, so we can teach him control and how to defend himself. His parents just think he's on an extended stay here so we have more time to work on a class project." Derek parked the car as Isaac nodded a little in understanding.

Stiles and Derek got out of the car, Stiles shifting the seat enough to allow Isaac to climb out of the car as well. The curly-haired teen rushed inside then, before Stiles had a chance to give the hug he wanted to. Stiles sighed softly, resting his forehead against the top of the car for a moment until he felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned to see Derek standing there and he smiled faintly. "This is all going to be bad, isn't it?" he asked softly.

"We'll make it through," replied Derek with a confidence he did not really feel. He was just as scared as Stiles was, if he were honest.

Meanwhile, inside the house, Laura was leading Isaac to the room that Jackson was using. The teen immediately rushed to his boyfriend's side, hugging Jackson tightly. He sighed softly and wrapped both arms around Isaac in turn. "Are you okay?" Isaac mumbled into Jackson's shoulder. He knew the medical answer, but was more interested in what Jackson felt about everything. He may physically been okay, but as a teen who had, as of that morning, been completely against the whole werewolf thing the entire situation had to be daunting.

"Sure," replied Jackson off-handedly, focusing enough on Isaac to keep himself calm while idly running a hand along the other teen's back. Every time he thought about what was going on, he got so angry. He'd already broken five pieces of furniture. Isaac, however, was the one thing he did not have any worry about breaking. The thought alone grounded him so much that he could not even think of shifting. Protecting Isaac had been an instinct for a while by that point, it had only grown stronger since the events of that afternoon. The change had not even completely taken yet. He was still mostly human, but subtle changes like his strength had already begun. Talia had said it was a good sign. If the way he could hear Isaac's heartbeat almost erratically in his ears was any sign, then his senses were strengthening as well. Isaac was practically shaking in his arms, Jackson was sure he was subconsciously playing through what possibly happened at the school. "Stop, Isaac." He pulled away enough to press a kiss to the other teen's forehead before looking at him. "I'll... adjust. This isn't exactly my idea of a picnic."

"At least you're still here." Isaac replied with a nod, still clinging to Jackson as if he were afraid the other teen was going to disappear if he loosened his grip any.

"Yeah. I've reason to, though." Jackson smiled faintly, one of those small yet honest smiles that Isaac wished he got to see more often and not just when they were alone. "I'm sorry, about... the fights and everything. I just... I didn't want you wrapped up in all of this."

"I know. You're still an asshole."

Isaac nodded, and Jackson chuckled softly as the other teen hugged him tightly once again, forehead resting on Jackson's shoulder. "Yeah, but 'm your asshole." Isaac smiled softly at the words, nodding a little in agreement, content to just stand there with Jackson, reminding himself that the other teen was _there_.

Down in the kitchen, Stiles sat with the Hale pack sans Derek, who was taking a shower upstairs; they were discussing the events of the day. "What's going to happen if the Argents find out about what happened?" Stiles finally asked, voicing the one question that everyone had but none seemed willing to actually speak up with.

Talia's soft expression turned from where Cora sat to the human boy in the room, regarding him for a moment before she spoke. "I am not sure," she replied in a voice that was both soft but still authoritative. "It could be the very ammo they need to drive us out. It is possible that this is the catalyst they are waiting for. Laura is keeping an eye on the capitol. If we need to leave, we'll know before anything can happen."

Stiles nodded a little with a slightly heavy breath, looking every bit as exhausted as they all felt. He was not sure what to think. A part of him was just relieved that Jackson was going to be okay, even if he was an asshole; but, for the most part, he wished the whole thing just did not happen. They then discussed possible plans of action, Talia reminding everyone that they needed to be ready to leave town at a moment's notice. By the time Derek returned downstairs, the mini-meeting had broken up; Allison and Talia were in the kitchen working on making dinner for everyone. Stiles sat in the living room, talking quietly to Scott while Cora was watching the younger children in the playroom.

Derek stopped at the doorway to the living room, debating on whether or not to go in there. Laura, of course, took that opportunity to go over and annoy her baby brother, knowing that Scott was too focused on Stiles to really hear. They really needed to work on his multitasking. "You should tell him," Laura said as she nudged Derek with her elbow, ignoring the way that the teen glared at her.

"Tell who what?" replied Derek, crossing his arms over his chest.

Laura simply rolled her eyes with an amused smirk. "Don't play dumb with me, Derek. I know you better than you think I do." She reached over and ruffled Derek's hair despite his protests and attempts to stop her. "For real, though. You should tell him; you might not have another chance, kiddo. Things are relatively calm for now; but, we don't know if we'll even be in Beacon Hills tomorrow. Shitty time for you to fall for someone; but, you haven't ever really had good timing."

"Gee, thanks." Derek rolled his eyes as well, something that many people thought of as being a very common Hale family trait.

"It's true, though. I'm not going to lie to you and pretend that everything's alright. We're on the brink of all out war, something that never has a happy ending for any parties involved." Laura shook her head a little before smiling softly at her brother. "So, do us all a favor and just tell him."

That night, Scott and Stiles ended up staying at the Hale house after they called their parents to let them know. Scott crashed on the living room floor with Allison sleeping on the couch, one arm draped over the side so she could hold Scott's hand as they slept. Laura took a photo of the two of them on her phone and set it as her background, announcing that they were too cute. The other betas all went to their respective homes, promising to leave their cell phones on in case they needed to be reached. Jackson and Isaac did not leave Jackson's room except to use the bathroom. Talia brought them food and spent several hours in there talking to the two teens.

"How can we keep going to school like nothing's wrong?" Stiles asked Derek as they two of them changed in Derek's room, backs to one another the entire time. Derek's clothes were just slightly too big for Stiles, but not enough that he swam in them or anything; just a loose, comfortable fit. He turned back around to look at the other teen, just as Derek finished tugging on a t-shirt. "I mean, I don't want anyone to drive us out or anything; but, still. I feel like a walking target every time I step foot in there."

"Have you told your parents that?" Derek asked as he sat down on his bed. Stiles shook his head with a shrug as he took a seat on Derek's desk chair. "Why not?"

"Because they'd pull me out without hesitation. I mean, I don't _like _it; but, I don't want the Argents to win that easily, either. They won't scare me away that easily." Stiles shook his head, chin lifted slightly in a defiant manner as if he had to prove himself to Derek or something.

Derek sighed softly and nodded a little in understanding. Honestly, he had no idea what was going to happen, but the lingering threat of war had them all on edge. They could lose their freedom, or worse, their lives, simply because they were different. In Stiles' case, it was not even the fact that he was different but simply because he did not care that those around him were different. "Just be careful, Stiles," Derek said after a moment. "I really don't want to have to see you in a hospital again." The last time had been terrible enough as it was.

"I make no promises." Stiles laughed and held up his hands in mock surrender when Derek glared at him in response. "I can promise to try to not end up there again; but, with my luck..." He lifted his shoulders in a shrug, idly shifting the seat side-to-side as he sat there.

"Maybe we should just put you in a bubble," Derek all but mumbled, making Stiles laugh once again, an honest smile forming on his face.

"You and my dad would both agree on that." Stiles nodded a little, still smiling as Derek did slightly as well. "Pretty sure I'd figure out a way to get hurt still, though."

Derek rolled his eyes, though he smiled a little as he said, "Yeah, that does sound like you."

"What can I say? I've got skills." Stiles laughed as Derek threw a pillow in his direction, which hit his knees as it landed there before falling to the floor. "Nice aim, Mr. Basketball Star."

"Oh, shut up."

Almost an hour later, Talia quietly left Jackson's room after Isaac had fallen asleep curled up at Jackson's side. She was not sure how well Jackson would adjust to his new abilities; but, it was clear to her that the teen already had his anchor, and keeping Isaac around would be the easiest way of keeping Jackson in control. She stopped in to check on each of her children as she passed their bedrooms, finding them each sleeping soundly. Talia paused in Derek's doorway, slowly smiling when she found both Derek and Stiles asleep on the bed. There was a definite distance between the two teens to the point it was obvious they had purposely tried to not touch, except for the fact that they had their hands linked between them, one hand each. Derek's other hand rested on Stiles' wrist, something that seemed like an absentminded gesture. Talia had half a mind to make them sleep in separate rooms, even though they were only friends (for the time being, she told herself), but the fact that they were both asleep peacefully and the door _was_ open made her simply continue on downstairs in order to make herself a cup of tea as she sat in the kitchen with her husband.

Things slowly seemed to go back to normal after that. There were no more attacks in Beacon Hills, and there was no news from the capitol on new movements. California was still in its state of non-issue with werewolves. The Argents continued trying to get that to change, but there was no talk on the attack on Jackson, who went back to school sooner than anyone thought he would be able to. Isaac was a great asset to his control. Jackson continued to sit with his human friends, making jokes at the others' expense; but, everyone knew by that point that it was simply to keep up appearances. Someone would think something was up if he suddenly switched tables and behaviors.

Danny and Ethan broke up again, but it only lasted two days before they were back together. Erica informed Stiles that they broke up every few months, and usually for something ridiculous. There was too much ego and testosterone in their relationship, according to the blonde beta. "So, got a date for homecoming?" Cora Hale asked Stiles about a week before the dance, suddenly appearing at his side, which made him jump and hit his knee on his locker.

"Shit, _fuck_," Stiles groaned, reaching down to place a hand on his knee, rubbing it as he looked over to the Hale twin. "What?"

Cora smirked and arched an eyebrow at Stiles, leaning against the lockers as she said, "I asked if you had a date for homecoming."

Stiles brow arched as he shut his locker and looked to her again. "If that's your way of asking, I'm gonna have to say 'no'."

Cora rolled her eyes with a long-suffering sigh as she pushed herself upright, walking with Stiles toward the cafeteria. "I'm going with Lydia, dumbass," she replied, though the words were said more kindly than they should have been. Stiles suddenly found himself afraid as Cora linked her arm with his.

"Okay. Why do you care, then?" asked Stiles as they continued walking, him keeping his pace slow to match hers.

"Because I want to know if my idiot brother asked you yet."

Cora smirked wickedly as Stiles practically choked on an overly sharp intake of breath. "What? No. I mean, we're just friends." Stiles squirmed a bit, attempting to slip his arm out of Cora's grasp, but her nails simply pressed into his skin a little.

"Uh-huh. Friends, right. Maybe you should just ask him, in case he doesn't work up the nerve." Cora smiled brightly as the two of them entered the cafeteria and she let go of Stiles to walk over to their table, where she sat down next to Lydia, pressing a kiss to the red-head's cheek.

Stiles let out a heavy breath that he did not realize he was holding and ran a hand through his hair, standing there for a moment before he went over to sit at the table with the others. It was only when lunch was half-way over and Stiles had barely touched the food that Melissa had packed for him that morning that he realized Derek was not sitting at the table. "Where's Derek?" Stiles asked Boyd, who lifted his shoulder in a shrug, his other arm draped around Erica's waist.

"He's in the library," answered Erica with a grin that made Stiles almost immediately regret asking. He needed better friends; no really, he did.

He nodded a little and continued to sit there for several more minutes before he got up and threw away what food he did not eat. Then, he made his way to the library, his hands in his hoodie pockets as he went. Stiles found Derek sitting at one of the back tables, working on an essay, probably the one for world history. Without a word, Stiles dropped down into the seat across from Derek, knowing that the other teen would already know he was there even before he reached the table. "Feeling anti-social today?" Stiles asked with a slight smile.

"Just busy with homework," answered Derek, not lifting his eyes from the textbook in front of him.

"You know that's not due for two weeks, right?" Stiles arched a brow and rolled his eyes fondly when Derek nodded in answer. "Should I just leave you alone then."

"You don't have to."

Stiles smiled and nudged Derek underneath the table with his foot, making the other teen finally look up at him. "Sure you're okay, dude?" It struck Stiles then that it was nice at school for once, _normal_. They'd had several days of just being teenagers, not worrying about a looming war. They'd all been worried about school dances and homework and who was dating who. Stiles hoped it would just continue to stay that way.

"Yeah, I'm just... avoiding the cafeteria." Derek pulled a slight face as he said it, and Stiles' brow furrowed a little in confusion and inquisition. Derek laughed a little and shrugged as he said, "Tina, that beta with the curly blonde hair? She keeps trying to ask me to the dance. 'Ve already said no."

"Ah, yeah. Good reason to avoid it." Stiles nodded a little, idly ruffling his hair with one hand as he thought back over what Cora had said to him earlier. Maybe she did have a point; maybe. Stiles wet his lips and was about to say something about it when the bell ringing for their next class cut him off and drowned out his sigh. "Guess it's time to get back to teachers molding our minds and all that jazz."

"Guess so." Derek nodded, gathering his things before the two of them started to walk out of the library and head to their next class.

When they got to the classroom, Derek grabbed Stiles' arm to stop him, making the other teen stop to look at him only then realizing how close they were. It should have been much too close for comfort, but it wasn't. "What?" Stiles asked, smiling faintly at the other teen.

Derek opened his mouth to reply, but then, Scott was suddenly there, dragging Stiles the last few steps into their shared classroom while going on about something that Allison had said. Stiles laughed and rolled his eyes fondly, sitting at a table with Scott while Derek went to sit at his usual table. Derek would just try again later, he decided as Stiles smiled apologetically at him from across the room before the other teen focused on Scott once again.


	9. Chapter 9

"Shit," Scott said suddenly in the class period following, turning in his seat to look at Stiles at the desk behind him. "I didn't interrupt something with you and Derek, did I?"

Stiles could not keep from laughing at the look on his brother's face. It was not uncommon for him to be _that_ unaware of the world around him when something else pertained to Allison. "Not really? I mean, he was trying to say something, I think but..." replied Stiles with a shrug of his shoulders. "S'no big deal. If it was important, he'll tell me later. We're working on homework for Harris after school."

Scott nodded a little, though he still seemed slightly upset by the whole situation (really, he was more bothered by it than Stiles was, which kind of confused Stiles). Of course, Scott's attempt at an apology was cut short when their teacher said, "If the two girls in the back are done gossiping about their hair, we can start the lesson." Both Stiles and Scott glared at the man, one who could easily be Harris' long-lost brother, but the lesson began and neither one said another word.

Meanwhile, across the school Isaac frowned when his cell phone vibrated in his pocket. The only people that would be texting him should have been in class at the moment. He tried to ignore that, but it only lasted a moment before he got up, grabbed his bag, and left the classroom, ignoring his teacher telling him to sit down. Isaac pulled his phone out of his pocket and checked the message. It was from Danny, telling him that Jackson had run out of their classroom. Danny also gave him which bathroom Jackson had locked himself into. Isaac then quickly started to walk to the bathroom, putting his phone into his jeans pocket.

Once he got to the bathroom, he knocked on the door. "Jackson, open the door. Please," Isaac said quietly, knowing that Jackson could hear him. "Jack, c'mon." It took several moments longer, but Isaac finally heard the sound of the door unlocking. He quietly slipped into the room, locking the door behind him once again. "What's going on?" Isaac set his backpack down on the floor near the door, watching Jackson, who stood across the room, leaning back against one of the sinks. His eyes still held a golden hue and if he could see Jackson's hands, he was sure there'd be claws there.

"There was this kid in class, running his mouth about everything, and I almost..." replied Jackson quietly, letting out a huff of breath through his nose. He was still so mad that he was practically shaking, wanting distance between himself and Isaac out of fear of hurting the other boy, even though he never had even during that crucial time when he was in the middle of changing and not in full control of his anger. Jackson tensed a little, realizing that Isaac was still walking over to him. "Don't."

Isaac just sighed softly, but did not listen. He only stopped walking when he was standing directly in front of Jackson. "We've been through this, Jack," the curly-haired teen, a faint hint of amusement in his voice. "You're not going to hurt me." Jackson said nothing, just moved his arms to grip either side of the sink behind him with his hands. Isaac simultaneously used one hand to tilt Jackson's head upward and ducked down enough for their lips to meet in a gentle kiss. He could feel the other teen remain tense next to him, but that only lasted several moments before Jackson relaxed again. Isaac pulled away with a small smile, and when Jackson opened his eyes, they faded back to their normal color.

Jackson was still angry, still wanted to go rip the head off of the kid in his class who had no idea what he was talking about; but, Isaac was right there, and very easily broken and the thought of accidentally hurting the other teen once again made it so that he could not even so much as think of shifting. Jackson let go of the sink to wrap both arms around Isaac's waist, pulling his boyfriend flush against his front. "What would I do without you?" he asked softly, a smile tugging on his lips as he spoke.

The other teen hummed a little, lifting his shoulders in a shrug. "Let's not find out, shall we?" He smiled when Jackson nodded in agreement before wrapping his arms around Jackson in turn, hugging him tightly. "Maybe we should think about switching schedule around so we're in all the same classes."

"Yeah? Sure you won't get sick of me?" Jackson's question was teasing, the tone in his voice light, but Isaac knew Jackson well enough by then to know there was an honest uncertainty there. They did live together, after all, and did not have much chance for time apart.

"Nah. Besides, I can always run over to Stiles' if I need to get away, which, y'know, isn't going to happen." Isaac wanted to be sure that Jackson was well aware of that fact. He knew that Jackson would not stop him if he did want to leave, and that was part of why he did not mind spending so much time with the other teen. Jackson respected him and wanted him to be happy; it was a good thing that Jackson was one of the things that did that. "We've got history last period, right?"

Jackson nodded a little, idly letting one of his hands rest on Isaac's back underneath his t-shirt, just taking comfort in feeling the other teen's warm skin against his own. He had never had that with someone before, a relationship where just being there next to them, knowing they were happy and healthy was enough. "Yeah."

Isaac gently squeezed the other teen, keeping his arms firmly around Jackson's torso. "Let's just go home," he suggested, with a nod of his own. "Talia said that she thinks you can, now; and, we can always go back to the Hale's if it's too much."

"Yeah, alright. Let's go home." Jackson stood there for another few moments, just holding Isaac close before he finally unwrapped his arms from the other teen, allowing him to step away. Isaac grabbed his hand while stepping back, linking their fingers together between them. Jackson picked up Isaac's backpack, making him smile softly as he unlocked the door and the two of them made their way into the hall as the bell signaling class change rang.

They did not say a word as they left the school, though once they were in the car, Isaac sent a quick text to their friends to let the others know that they were leaving. He did not want any of them to get the wrong idea and freak out or something. Jackson let Isaac pick the radio station, and he smiled a little when the curly-haired teen sang softly along with the song playing, probably forgetting that Jackson could actually hear him still. Both teens were glad that Jackson's parents weren't home when they got to the house a couple of minutes later; it just meant they had more time before being faced with the awkwardness of the lies given to explain their absence from the house.

Once inside the house, Isaac double and triple checked the locks (a habit that Jackson noticed but did not comment on) before turning to face Jackson with a smile. "So... shower or movie?" Isaac questioned, knowing that either one would be a great way at distracting Jackson from the day and what could have happened. Isaac liked to focus on the fact that Jackson did not hurt the other student; that was a good thing, in his opinion. He knew his boyfriend, however, and knew that Jackson would be dwelling on that _almost_ for a while. Either way, warm showers or distracting movies were always great options to try to get his mind off of things.

"Either," Jackson replied with a shrug as he reached out to grab Isaac by the belt loops of his jeans, pulling him forward. The blue-eyed boy laughed softly as he followed the direction, and he wrapped his arms around Jackson's neck, one hand idly toying with the other teen's hair. "You pick."

"Me pick? Hmm... I-" Isaac cut off with a gasp and a laugh when Jackson suddenly picked him up, one hand underneath each of his thighs. He easily wrapped his legs around the other boy's waist and let Jackson carry him upstairs that way. Isaac still was not used to things like that. Sure, Jackson could have lifted him up before, but never that easily. Isaac was not exactly light. "Movie," Isaac finally answered when they were almost to the bedroom, nodding a little as he continued to run his fingers through the short hair on the back of Jackson's head. "Your pick for that, though." Isaac nodded with a grin before pressing a kiss to the corner of Jackson's mouth.

"Alright." Jackson nodded as he carried Isaac over to the bed and all but dropped the other teen on top of it (chuckling at the soft _oof!_ From the other teen as he landed) before he went to grab his laptop and a random movie off of the shelf.

As he carried them over to the bed, he watched while Isaac tugged off his shoes and jeans ("What? I'm probably going to fall asleep, and I'm not sleeping in jeans," the other teen said.) with an amused smirk on his face. Jackson simply shook his head at the question and set aside the laptop before bending down enough to kiss his boyfriend again. Isaac smiled slightly into the kiss, reaching up with one hand to brush his fingers along Jackson's jawline absentmindedly. "What was that for?" he asked as Jackson broke the kiss, sitting down next to Isaac.

"Just for being here," replied Jackson as he opened the laptop and turned it on, almost surprised at how much he actually meant that. There for the longest time he had worried whether or not he would actually see Isaac again after the other teen had gone to his house; he'd worried that whatever was going on between them was not going to last. With everything that had happened, though, it slowly became clear to Jackson that Isaac was not planning on going anywhere. He was definitely okay with that.

Isaac smiled as he settled down onto the bed more, his head resting on one of the overly fluffy pillows. "Be careful, or I might just have enough ammo to prove to everyone you really are a sweetheart," Isaac teased, nudging the other teen with his elbow lightly. Jackson just smiled in response, though, as he finished setting up the movie.

It was some mindless action flick with too many explosions and too little clothing for Isaac's taste, but he knew the mind-numbingness of it was a quick way to help Jackson just forget everything else. So, he did not complain as Jackson set the laptop on the bedside table, turning it so they could see the screen from the bed, and turning the volume up. Instead, he just smiled at Jackson again when the other teen moved to lay behind him while they both faced the screen. Jackson's chin rested on Isaac's shoulder, arm around the other teen's middle while their joined hands rested against Isaac's stomach. They often ended up laying like that, and at some point, Jackson's leg would end up thrown over Isaac's as well, curling back underneath it in a way that kept Isaac pressed close to him. Isaac's favorite was the times he would end up asleep with his head on Jackson's chest, the other teen's fingers carding through his curly hair; but, that moment was not about him, it was about Jackson and comforting him.

Isaac let go of Jackson's hand after a few minutes, only to run his fingers repeatedly over Jackson's hand and arm, letting his boyfriend's hand rest on his stomach where his shirt had ridden up. He continued with it as the movie went on until he finally drifted off to sleep, feeling warm and safe in Jackson's arms. Jackson smiled faintly and pressed a kiss to Isaac's jaw, taking comfort in the fact that Isaac was right there and he was safe, and that he had not hurt that kid in class earlier. Everything was going to be alright, he told himself, closing his eyes as he stayed as close as possible to his boyfriend. "I love you, Zac," Jackson mumbled, despite the fact that Isaac was already asleep. Maybe with a little more time, he would be able to bring himself to say it while Isaac was awake.

"Hey, Stiles! Wait up," Derek called over the din of the hallway as he jogged to catch up with the other teen. Stiles stopped walking and turned to face him, waiting there until Derek caught up. "Can I ride over there with you? Cora's gotta get the kids and Allison needs the other car."

"Yeah, sure. C'mon," answered Stiles with a smile and a nod before jerking his head a little toward the doors that led to the parking lot. "So, uh, Scott only realized that he'd maybe interrupted you talking earlier in the class period _after _that."

Derek laughed a little, the sound almost seeming slightly embarrassed, though Stiles was not sure why. "That doesn't really surprise me. He was going on about Allison again."

Both teens laughed softly, but let the subject drop as they fell into a companionable silence that lasted the entire drive to the Stilinski-McCall home that was only broken by the sound of the radio playing softly. Still, neither one _said _anything until after they'd gone inside and sat down to work on their homework. Once again, Derek was perhaps too close for it to have been comfortable, but Stiles paid that no mind as they worked on the assignment from Harris. Derek's arm was practically around the slightly younger teen when they finished and Stiles idly tapped his pencil on the top of his textbook. "Earlier when you stopped me in the hall?" he said after a moment of quiet, keeping his focus on the textbook in front of him instead of looking over at Derek.

"Yeah?" Derek replied, setting aside his own book since the work was done. He watched Stiles carefully, trying to figure out just what the other boy was attempting to say. The fact that Stiles had not pulled away any seemed to be a good sign in his opinion, though. He only hoped that it continued.

"Were you trying to ask me to the dance?" Stiles fought the urge to flinch even as the words came out of his mouth, seriously hoping that Cora had not been attempting to humiliate him or something earlier, and that there was something to the events of the day.

Stiles' heart almost started to drop as Derek remained silent, but after a moment the other teen said, "What if I was?"

Stiles then let out a laugh that was more breath than sound, smiling faintly as he stilled his pencil but still did not look over at Derek. "Then, I'd be very ticked off that you let Scott..." He trailed off when Derek grabbed his chin and turned his face so that they were facing one another in order to lean in and kiss him on the lips. It was a gentle kiss, a barely-there brush of lips but Stiles still felt his breath catch at the action because, well, he found it difficult to believe that it actually happened.

"`Ve wanted to do that since I met you," admitted Derek quietly as he pulled away enough to look at the teen sitting next to him.

Stiles laughed softly, the sound filled with slight disbelief despite the smile on his face. "You should have; I would have been _very _on board with that idea." Stiles was a little surprised to find that he meant it, too. While he may not have really had a thing for Derek until after they started to get to know one another, he had always just wanted to kiss the other boy because Derek was _that _gorgeous. "You're not getting out of taking me to the dance, now, y'know." Stiles flashed a cheeky grin as Derek laughed softly with a shake of his head.

"Wouldn't want to." Stiles could not keep from smiling in more earnest at Derek's words and the fact that he seemed to _mean _it. He then grabbed the front of Derek's shirt to pull the other teen into another kiss, deeper that time but something still light and unassuming. If he spent the rest of the evening until his parents got home trading gentle kisses that practically made his toes curl with none other than Derek Hale, well that was his business and his business alone. Until he told Scott, anyway. And, if he spent the rest of his evening all smiles while trying to figure out just where they stood (going to the dance, yes; dating? who knew) only to find he did not care as long as Derek kissed him again, then that truly was no one's business but his own.


	10. Chapter 10

It was quiet in Stiles' bedroom and the smile that had been on his face slowly faded as Scott's words sank in. Stiles' brow furrowed a little and he crossed his arms over his stomach, leaning over so his elbows were on his thighs as he sat there on his desk chair. "Excuse me?" he said, his voice soft but ringing with disbelief.

Scott sighed and ran a hand through his hair while trying to figure out the best way to say what it was that he had to say. He was sitting on the edge of his brother's bed, almost wanting to just say "forget it" and remove the saddened expression on the other teen's face. "I just... I mean, I'm glad that he likes you and all, and that he asked you to the dance; but, I'm not sure being with him is a good idea," Scott said slowly and carefully, though he was still unsure if his word choice was the correct one. Stiles' brow simply lifted in response and Scott sighed heavily. "I just mean, he's a werewolf."

"Yeah, so are you." Stiles continued to watch Scott, trying to figure out just what the other boy was thinking because he could not quite figure it out. He had thought that Scott would be happy for him. "So is Jackson, but you're not telling Isaac to back off."

"No one _knows_ that Jackson's been turned. Everyone knows who Derek Hale is, Stiles." The slightly elder teen sighed and then groaned when Stiles let out a disbelieving laugh, running a hand over his face. "It's just... you're already enough of a target, why add to it even more?"

Stiles got up as Scott spoke, sighing with a shake of his head as he ran his fingers through his untidy hair repeatedly. "That's just it, I'm already a target; so, whether or not I go to the dance with Derek or I actually start dating him will not change the fact that there are people out there who want me dead. That's not enough of a reason for me to not see him, Scotty." Stiles gave his best friend a smile that did not quite meet his eyes, a half-smile that was more condescending than meaningful.

"Stiles, we're preparing for a _war_. You remember that right?" Scott's voice was exasperated, on the edge of pleading as he stood up and went over to rest a hand on his best friend's shoulder. "Derek will be one of the first to go fight if we have to. He's being _trained _for it, Stiles."

"He's seventeen!"

"That doesn't matter in terms of survival." Scott shook his head, though it was easy to tell that the teen was heart-heavy with the facts he was sharing. It was a truth they all knew, even if they did not acknowledge it. That did not make it any less of a possibility. "Stiles, I _know _you like him, and if he was anyone else you know that I'd be standing here telling you to go for it; but, you're my brother and I... I just don't want to see you hurt."

Stiles smiled sadly, wetting his lips as he nodded and reached up to rest his hand on top of Scott's. "I know that you don't want me to get hurt; but, Scott... I _really _like him." He nodded again, taking a step away from Scott as he crossed his arms over his chest, his stance becoming a little more defiant. He was still unsure just where he and Derek stood, but he was not about to just throw it away, not after having gotten so far. "You're my brother, Scott, and I would do... anything you asked of me. But not this. Please, just let me have this... for as long as I can. Don't ask me to stay away from him, because I won't."

Stiles and Scott did not speak on the drive to school that morning. It was tense, and awkward, and Stiles just wished it would go away. He wished he had never told Scott what had happened the evening before. He would have given anything for typical high school drama, not his brother disapproving of a potential relationship because it could literally put him in more danger than he already was. Stiles was not stupid, he knew well that associating himself with the werewolves even more would only make him a greater target. That did not and would not change his mind. Stiles hoped that Derek knew that as well.

Scott jumped out of the car almost immediately after Stiles had parked it, making the younger teen sigh softly. He grabbed his backpack out of the back seat before climbing out of the Jeep and making his way into the school. Stiles then set out to look for Derek, though he did not have to look for very long. The other teen was standing near their locker, talking to Lydia and Cora about something that Stiles could not hear from that distance. Stiles smiled a little to himself when he noticed how relaxed the other three teens seemed to be, as if they had heard some kind of good news. Derek turned to look at him as he got closer, a smile forming on his face as he said, "Hey, Stiles."

Stiles smiled softly in response before he leaned in to kiss the other teen in lieu of actually saying anything. He swore he could hear Lydia gasp softly, and he smiled a little into the kiss as Derek dropped his backpack to lift that hand and rest on the back of his neck. Neither one paid any mind to the few cat calls from down the hall (Isaac and Boyd may or may not have been the culprits) or knew that Jackson hid his amused smirk by pressing a kiss to the side of Isaac's head as he mumbled he was going to go find his friends. "Hi," Stiles finally said, slightly breathless as the kiss finally broke.

Derek laughed softly with a smile, pulling away enough to look at Stiles. "Hi. Not complaining at all, but what was that for?"

"Because I wanted to," answered Stiles with a shrug, ignoring the amused look that Cora and Lydia shared before they walked off hand-in-hand. "Go to the movies with me Friday?"

"Yeah?" Derek could not keep from smiling as they stood there, lowering his hand to rest on Stiles' back, holding him close.

Stiles laughed with a bright smile of his own and a nod before stealing another, more chaste kiss from the other teen. "Yeah."

"Cool."

"Well, aren't you men of many words?" Danny teased as he and Ethan stopped next to the other two teen's, leaning against his boyfriend's side as Ethan's arm was draped around his shoulders. "You could charm your way into anyone's life like that."

"Oh, bite me, Mahealani," replied Stiles with a fond eye-roll, shifting so that he stood next to Derek, the other teen's arm still around his waist. Stiles definitely did not mind the closeness.

"Brave threat there, Stilinski." Danny's eyes flashed gold with a wicked grin, though there was a hint of playfulness to his voice. "I do have to thank you, though. You just got me near one-hundred bucks!" Danny grinned while Ethan groaned and Stiles' brow rose in a mix of confusion and curiosity as he shared a look with Derek. "Most of us had a bet going on when you two losers would finally get together after we heard that he wouldn't leave your side in the hospital. I won."

"Yeah, yeah," grumbled Ethan, rolling his eyes with a long-suffering sigh. "I'm gonna have to listen to him gloat for weeks now. Thanks."

"Oh, leave them alone," said Isaac with a smile as he walked over to them as well, crossing his arms over his chest. "You couldn't even let them have a moment, could you?"

Danny hummed, as if thinking it over as he tapped his chin with one finger. He then grinned wolfishly at Isaac as he said, "Nah."

Stiles rolled his eyes and shook his head, though he could not get rid of the smile that was on his face, even as the bell announcing the start of classes sounded. Derek let go of Stiles to pick up his backpack, only to switch it to the other hand and take Stiles' hand in his own, linking their fingers together. "C'mon, let's head to class," Derek stated with a nod in the direction of Harris' classroom. The received a lot of looks and points in their direction, Harris sneered faintly when he saw them holding hands, and there were whispers that Derek tried his best to ignore. However, for the most part, people were rather quiet about the new development. Stiles just hoped that Scott would continue to be wrong.

* * *

"Two for _Now You See Me_," Derek said from behind Stiles, placing the cash for it on the teller's ledge.

Stiles smiled over his shoulder at Derek as he said, "You didn't have to pay."

"Wanted to." Derek grinned and took the tickets before ushering Stiles into the building and away from the cool wind that brought with it the threat of rain. "D'you want popcorn or anything?"

"Mmm... just a soda for me; but, I'm buying. What d'you want?" replied Stiles with a smile, taking Derek's hand in his own to lead the other teen over to the concession stand.

They each just got a soda before going to the screen the movie they had chosen was going to be playing in, pointedly ignoring any looks that came their way. Despite the odd looks they had gotten all evening, Stiles was honestly having a great time. He always enjoyed being around Derek, though, so he guessed that was not too much of a stretch. The theater was already dark as they picked a couple of seats near the middle. Stiles was glad that they had chosen a movie that had been out for a while for that very reason. Plus, he had not seen it yet and he really wanted to. He smiled a little to himself when Derek draped an arm around his shoulders, and he leaned against the elder teen more, practically resting his head on Derek's shoulder.

They did not talk during the movie, save a few comments here and there about what was going on, and actually paid attention to the screen; but, Derek spent the entire time idly brushing his fingers against Stiles' arm. Stiles had never felt so... at ease with someone before. The only other date he had been on had been a travesty that ended with him dumping his soda on her lap. It had been terrible. Throughout that date, though, Stiles had felt like he was trying too hard to impress her. With Derek, he did not feel that. Sure, he'd spent a good while being nervous that he was going to embarrass himself, but that was something different entirely.

When the movie ended and the lights came up, Stiles stood up with a smile and turned to face Derek. The smile faltered, however, when he noticed that the other teen was looking fairly exhausted, something he had never seen of him before. "Derek, are you okay?" Stiles asked, reaching out to brush his fingers against the other boy's face, which seemed to be paler than usual, even in the lighting of the theater.

"Yeah, 'm fine," Derek replied with a nod, though his brow was furrowed slightly. "C'mon, let's get out of here."

Stiles nodded before the two of them started to leave the theater, Derek's arm wrapping around Stiles' shoulders again. As Stiles wrapped his arm around Derek's waist, the two of them stumbled slightly. "Derek, are you sure you're okay? You don't _look _okay," Stiles said quietly, though he could not hide the concern in his voice. Derek nodded, but didn't say anything for a long few moments. Once they got outside, he started to say something about needing to call someone, but he never got the words out before rushing over to the near-by trash can in order to get sick.

Werewolves couldn't get sick. Stiles _knew_ that. Yet, there he was watching Derek do just that. Something was very much not right and out of instinct, he quickly pulled out his phone and called Melissa's number while going over and placing a hand on Derek's back, absentmindedly rubbing it. He could feel the other teen shaking beneath his fingers and it made his throat tighten to the point that he almost could not respond when Melissa picked up the phone. "Mom," he said in a slightly hoarse voice which made the nurse freeze mid-reach for her purse on the counter at their house, "something's wrong with Derek and I don't know what to do."

"Stiles, where are you? The theater, still?" Melissa questioned as she snatched up her purse and rushed out the front door. She was not sure what was going on just yet, but if the sound of worry in Stiles' voice was anything to go by, she would just figure it out when she got there. "Stiles?"

"Shit, sorry. Yeah, we're there," the teen replied, his voice still shaking as he helped Derek over to sit on the bench after catching the teen from nearly falling over. "I think he's sick, but..."

"I'm calling Talia, and I'll be there in less than five minutes. Just keep making sure he's okay until I get there, okay?" Melissa sighed heavily when she heard a barely-there response from Stiles before the line went dead. She paid no attention to the speed limit and was at the theater in less time than she had anticipated. "Boys!" She rushed over to the bench where the two teens sat; Derek was slumped over with his head on Stiles' shoulder, visibly shaking as Melissa drew near. "What's going on?"

"I-I don't know," answered Stiles, his voice sounding tight as he shook his head. "He just... when we got ready to leave he looked really sick, a-and then he got sick. Mom, it was _black_."

"Stiles, help me get him into the car." Melissa's voice was kind but urgent, not wanting to get Stiles any more worked up than he already was. She knew well it did not take much to tip him into a panic attack of late, and it was not the time or place for something like that.

Together, they got the other teen to the car, and Melissa called Talia to say she was taking Derek to the hospital but that she should meet them there. Talia wasted no time in agreeing before ending the call. Stiles was rather oblivious to all that, though. He was sitting in the back seat next to Derek, who felt like he was running a very high fever and he kept coughing randomly. Thankfully, he did not get sick again in the car. Stiles idly played with Derek's hair near the back of his neck, bouncing his own knee the entire drive to the hospital, which seemed much too long, in Stiles' opinion.

Once they got there, they were met by Peter Hale, who immediately opened the door on the side that Derek was on and helped his nephew out of the car. "What are you doing here?" Stiles asked him, climbing out of the other side while glancing around for any sign of Talia.

"My sister's on her way," answered Peter, not bothering to hide the roll of his eyes. "She went to get the dear doctor Deaton. Let's get him inside."

Stiles did not argue with that as he rushed inside with the two of them, Melissa trailing behind. She moved in front of them once they got to one of the nurses' stations and led them to a room they could use. Melissa then did what she could to try to figure out what was wrong with Derek while not having much of any knowledge on werewolves. "Wolfsbane?" Peter suggested, though whatever was going on with his nephew was not a reaction to any wolfsbane he had ever seen despite similarities.

Peter instinctively grabbed Stiles' arm and pulled the teen backward when Stiles rushed forward as Derek struggled to catch a breath, gripping tightly onto either side of the bed. He sat up only a little with a flash of his eyes just as Talia and Alan Deaton came into the room. "Maybe he should wait in the hall," Deaton suggested with a nod toward Stiles. The teen attempted to argue, but Melissa frowned faintly and ushered him outside anyway, telling them to call if she could help any.

"Is he going to be okay?" Stiles questioned, wringing his hands in front of him while leaning against the wall across the hallway from the door to the room Derek was in so that he could watch it for any signs of movement.

"Of course, sweetheart," replied Melissa, though they both heard the unsureness in her voice.

* * *

Stiles' eyes were closed, his eyes resting back against the wall behind the chair he had finally sat on there in the hall, arms crossed over his chest. Talia stopped in the doorway of the room on her way out into the hallway before smiling softly as she entered the hall with Peter staying there in the room to have someone in the family there overnight while she went to go deliver word to the rest of the family. Stiles lifted his head and sat up a little more, opening his mouth to ask how Derek was only to have the question cut off by Talia's answer of, "Derek will be fine. He just needs some rest." She nodded a little, and Stiles mirrored the action with a heavy sigh. "It was some unknown mix of wolfsbane and mountain ash. We're lucky Deaton figured it out. He'll be weak for a while, but you can go and see him if you want."

They had already informed Melissa, who had taken the information to the nurses' station so that Derek could be officially put under the hospital's watch, at least for the night. Peter would stay there as well, however. But, when Stiles went into the room after Talia left, Peter made his way to the cafeteria to get himself some coffee. "So... poisoned, huh?" questioned Stiles with a slight laugh as he sat down on the edge of Derek's bed, earning himself a tired but amused smirk from Derek.

"Only my luck," he replied, voice tired and scratchy. "Sorry."

"No, it's... don't apologize. Gonna be kinda hard to top this date, though." Stiles smirked with a chuckle at his own joke, which made Derek shake his head amusedly with a soft sigh. "How're you feeling?"

"I'm fine, Stiles," Derek stated, smiling a little as he nodded. "Stop worrying."

"Sorry. It's just... dude, 've never seen anything like that before. You were _really_ pale, and I -" Stiles cut off with a sharp intake of breath when Derek suddenly leaned up and silenced him with a kiss. He lifted a hand to rest on the other teen's shoulder, gently squeezing it when Derek pulled away. "I'm just glad you're okay."


	11. Chapter 11

Stiles was still a nervous wreck come Monday morning. They still had not figured out exactly what had happened to Derek or _how_. All they knew was that somehow, he had gotten a terrible mix of wolfsbane and mountain ash in his system. He went to the school early that morning, figuring that Derek, if he was well enough to come back to school, would be there for basketball practice. Sure enough, Stiles found him in the gym with the rest of the team. The other teen was all smiles and laughter as he joked around with his friends, until they looked away and Stiles watched as the smile fell away. Derek just looked _tired_ in a way he probably should not have. He was still paler than normal, but the others did not seem to notice. Especially since once they looked back to Derek, the other teen was smiling and joking once again.

Stiles absentmindedly grabbed one of the stray basketballs and spun it between his hands, pressing two fingers of each one against the ball. He continued watching until it seemed that practice was over and Derek came over to where he was standing with one of those smiles that Derek had been giving to all of his friends. "Are you okay?" Stiles questioned, tapping his fingers against the basketball he still held.

"Yeah, I'm fine," replied Derek with another smile and a nod, laughing a little though the sound seemed forced to both of their ears.

The slightly younger teen's brow rose a little, as if questioning Derek's response before he suddenly threw the basketball forward toward the middle of Derek's chest. The other teen barely caught the ball before it made contact, and he stumbled back a step and a half when usually, Derek would have caught that without any problems. He would have made some big _show_ out of it with that cheeky little smirk that Stiles shated/s lo- really enjoyed. Stiles clenched his teeth and threw a punch at Derek's arm, something that made the other teen flinch. "You are _not_ fine, Derek," Stiles replied with a frown. He may have been better than he'd been at the hospital, _thankfully_, but he was not _fine_. "Don't lie to me."

"Stiles..."

"No." Stiles hit Derek's shoulder in a manner that showed his obvious irritation without hurting either one of them, shaking his head a little. "You can fake it to your friends all you want; but, don't lie to _me_."

Derek idly wet his lips and nodded a little before reaching out to tug Stiles over to him by the string of the other teen's hoodie. "Yeah, alright," Derek stated, though they both knew that it would not be the last time that Derek attempted to keep something from Stiles. Derek did not want to lie to Stiles, but he had not wanted the other teen to worry about him, not with everything else that was going on. He would be fine soon enough. It would just take more time than they had anticipated. "Don't be mad."

The slightly younger teen let out a heavy breath, and he smiled a little before shaking his head. "I'm not. Just worried about you." Stiles smiled a little once again before he gently kissed Derek, wrapping his arms around the other boy as Derek's hands rested on his waist.

"Well, aren't you two absolutely _adorable_," Peter Hale drawled as he came striding across the gym. Stiles did not miss the way that Derek's grip shifted on his hips and drew him even closer. Peter smirked at the action, brow raising a little as he crossed his arms over his chest. "My, someone's edgy."

"What do you _want_, Peter?" Derek asked, voice sighed as he watched the other werewolf warily.

"Can't I come say 'hello' to my favorite nephew?" Peter smirked again as Derek's eyes narrowed a little. "Or maybe big sis wanted me to keep an eye out."

Derek sighed and rolled his eyes. That sounded more accurate. Of course Laura would be worried that something else would happen. "I don't need a babysitter," the teen all but growled at Peter, who simply lifted his shoulders in a shrug.

Stiles looked between the two of them for a moment, not exactly sure what to do, though he was seriously considering just dragging Derek out of the gym. However, Stiles looked to Peter once again as he finally said, "Isn't the staff going to notice a creepy pedophile wandering along the corridors?"

Peter let out a startled bark of a laugh, his grin growing slightly predatory in a way that made Derek shift Stiles behind him. Well, he tried to, anyway, but Stiles shrugged him off. He could take care of himself, thank you. "You should watch that mouth of yours before you really get into trouble, Stilinski," Peter stated, his voice more flat than holding any veil of a threat. Stiles did not trust him, however.

The teen simply shrugged his shoulders in response. He had been told that several times throughout his life. He highly doubted that it would ever change. Derek seemed torn between facepalming, rolling his eyes, and sighing with a shake of his head. Eventually, he settled on the later as he let go of Stiles to take the other teen's hand in his own. "C'mon," Derek said, pointedly ignoring Peter once again. He did not have time for whatever his uncle was up to. "Let's head to class."

Stiles nodded and followed Derek out of the gym, glancing back to Peter once more with a slight shudder at the look in the man's eyes. There was just something about him that did not seem _right_, but if Derek's reactions to the man were anything to go by, Stiles was not alone in those thoughts. It was just what they needed, Stiles thought with a heavy sigh, a psycho werewolf on top of everything else. "Cora's insisting we take a group photo at the dance," Derek stated as they got near their locker. Stiles' brow furrowed a little in confusion as he processed the words before he realized that the dance was that weekend. He had almost forgotten with everything else going on.

He snorted a little with a shake of his head as he said, "A group photo made up of mostly werewolves, because that won't turn out to be one giant eye flash."

"Try telling that to _her_." Derek shook his head as well, smirking in amusement as he leaned against the locker next to the one he shared with Stiles, watching as the other teen gathered his things for their first class.

"You're staring again." Stiles tried to hide a faint smile as he shoved his textbook for history into the locker since he had taken it home the night before and would not need it until later.

The elder teen chuckled a little, tilting his head to one side so that it rested against the lockers. "Problem with that?"

Stiles closed his backpack after getting everything he would need for chemistry before moving aside so that Derek could grab what he needed. "It's a little creepy."

"You don't mind," replied Derek with a cheeky grin as he grabbed his own textbook, notebook, and pen for class.

"No..." Stiles laughed softly at his own response, smiling a little as Derek leaned in to chastely kiss him while closing the locker door. It was odd, how easy things with Derek was. He was not used to anyone looking at him as intently as Derek did, often without even realizing, and yet it never made him uncomfortable. He guessed that it was nice, in an odd way, to know that someone _wanted_ to look at him. He was so used to being that kid that everyone knew and liked in a purely platonic sense, well, that was until he started dating a werewolf; but, Stiles did not mind in the slightest. The dirty looks he received as they walked down the hall hand-in-hand were more than worth it.

"Derek's looking better," Isaac commented idly as he swung himself back and forth on Stiles' desk chair in his friend's bedroom Friday evening before the dance. He, Scott, and Stiles were getting ready there while Jackson, Allison, and Derek were at the Hale House.

Scott nodded in agreement as he ran his hands through his hair with gel on his fingers to get his hair styled right and he said, "Yeah. No longer looks like a strong gust of wind will knock him over."

They'd all spent most of the week worrying about Derek in their own ways. Isaac was quiet about it, randomly giving Derek milk or juice when they were studying together at the Hales'. Scott had teased Derek a lot, but there was always that sense of concern beneath it. Derek glared at him more often than not. Stiles did nod do or say anything different than normal; but, that was because he was too busy telling himself that things were going to be fine, that Derek would be okay. It would just take time, and it had. About a week later and he was finally back to his normal self. "Yeah," Stiles agreed, his voice mostly breath as he smiled and nodded as well from his spot on the floor. He was probably wrinkling the pants that Lydia had bought him and forced him to wear that evening; but, he did not care too much. Isaac seemed slightly worried that Lydia would be mad, though, as he pointed it out several times.

By that point in the evening, Isaac was just fishing for conversation about anything besides the dance. He was extremely nervous; he had never gone to a school dance before, and he was scared he was going to make a fool of himself, especially if Jackson actually wanted to dance. Scott was a bundle of smiling energy as usual, and Stiles, well, none of them could really pin-point Stiles' mood that evening. He seemed distracted by something, and whatever it was was fairly big as he missed all the shared looks between his best friends until Scott finally asked, "Dude, are you okay?"

"Yeah," replied Stiles quickly, almost too quickly, and he winced a little as his own voice cracked slightly. With a sigh, he ran a hand through his hair repeatedly and cleared his throat. "I dunno. I've just got this... bad feeling I guess. I can't explain it. It's probably just me being paranoid, though." They'd gone nearly a week without any further incidents. Nobody else had gotten hurt or threatened, the government was still on a non-issue about the werewolf community in California though several other states were signing the same law that Georgia had.

"Hyper-vigilance," Isaac stated quietly, nodding a little as he smiled faintly at his best friend, who returned the gesture in kind.

"It's just a school dance," insisted Scott with one of his brilliant smiles that seemed to make everyone feel better. Stiles could not keep from honestly smiling at his brother, though a part of him still felt worried. If Scott was going to remain optimistic, than so was he. "What's the worst that can happen?"

Stiles and Isaac tensed at Scott's unwittingly foreboding sentence. In Stiles' experience, that phrase never preceded anything good. He was about to comment on it when there was a sudden knock on the frame of his bedroom door, which caused the tension to die as both Isaac and Scott jumped with small shouts as they all looked to see Melissa standing in the doorway with an amused expression on her face. "Your dates are here," she said with a soft chuckle and a shake of her head, looking between the three boys with a bright smile on her face. "Your last winter formal, huh? Never thought we'd get here. You've all grown up so much."

"Mom," Scott groaned, even though he had a smile on his face as he went over to give her a one-armed hug. "It's not the time for this. We've still got prom next term. Do it then."

"Oh, alright." Melissa laughed at herself, rolling her eyes at Scott as she ruffled his hair despite his protests.

The four of them then headed downstairs, Melissa gently squeezing Isaac's shoulder as they went, making the curly-haired teen smile softly at her. "Don't stay out too late," John Stilinski stated as he crossed his arms over his chest while the six teens conjugated in the main hallway. Of course, he could not speak for Isaac and Jackson, but at least two of the teens were under his guardianship.

"Yes, Dad," Stiles said with a roll of his eyes, though there was a smile on his face that he could not stop as he stood close to Derek, all of them ready to get out of there before awkward situations or threats of photos.

The car ride to the dance was rather quiet, with four people crammed into the backseat (Allison, Scott, Jackson, and Isaac), while Derek drove and Stiles sat up front. They listened to the radio, but nobody really said anything. Scott spent the ride to the school with his arms around Allison's waist and his face buried into the side of her neck, making her smile and run a hand through his hair as he nuzzled against her.

Once they finally got to the school, the three couples went into the building. Scott immediately led Allison to the dance floor with matching bright smiles. Jackson and Isaac walked hand-in-hand to where Jackson's friends were so that they could do the all-but-mandatory check in and Jackson could keep up appearances before he led Isaac out to dance as well, the curly-haired teen smiling shyly. Stiles and Derek had already agreed to sit out any of the fast songs, and they went to find a table that all of them could use off to one side. "Are you okay?" Derek asked Stiles as they took their seats, brow furrowed slightly as he studied the younger teen.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine," replied Stiles, shaking his head slight as if shaking off a thought before smiling over at Derek. "Sorry, just kinda... I dunno. Spacey. I'm good, though."

Derek nodded a little, though his expression did not change for another few moments before he leaned in and pressed a kiss to Stiles' cheek. "You look amazing, by the way," Derek stated as he pulled away with that charming grin that he was known for. "Figured you'd rather not want me to say something like that in front of your dad."

"Mmm... I wouldn't have minded, but I'm sure _he's _glad." Stiles laughed softly with a smile, the expression slowly turning into a smirk as he reached over and tugged on the collar of the blazer that Derek wore that evening. "C'mon, I know we said no fast songs, but I'm changing the agreement. Dance with me."

"I'm a terrible dancer." Derek groaned a little, but he let Stiles lead him out to the dance floor where all of their friends were.

"I don't care." Stiles shook his head with a bright grin as they joined the others. Isaac smiled when he saw Stiles actually near-by, looking a lot more relaxed than he had been at the house. Stiles was glad. He deserved a night of fun. They all did.

It was nice, Stiles decided after a few minutes. There was no division of the students that night. They were all just a mixed up mass on the floor while the teachers stood off to one side, watching over them. It was rather surprising how nice people were being to each other. He guessed Lydia had been right earlier, when she said that school dances tended to unify the place. At least for the time being, they did not seem to have to worry about people being jerks because of differences.

Stiles laughed with another smile as the music's tempo slowed down dramatically and Derek spun him around so they were face-to-face again, pulling him closer. "Hi," Stiles said as he lifted his arms to wrap them around the other teen's neck.

He managed not to wince when Derek stepped on his feet, though the other teen did. "Sorry," stated the basketball player with a sheepish smile, ducking his head a little.

"Don't. S'fine." Stiles nodded a little, pressing a kiss to the corner of Derek's mouth before leaning in closer to the other teen, holding onto him tightly as they danced cheek-to-cheek. The brown-eyed teen smiled softly as he felt Derek's arms tighten around his waist, and he looked over the other boy's shoulder to their friends as they continued to dance.

Allison was beaming as she toyed with Scott's hair while they danced. Jackson and Isaac had moved off to one side and were talking quietly as Jackson held the curly-haired teen close to him, a smile on his face unlike one Stiles had ever seen before. They definitely were better for each other than Stiles had ever thought possible. Cora and Lydia were lost in their own little world, Lydia actually allowing Cora to lead as they danced. Danny and Ethan were done fighting again and both seemed to be all smiles as they swayed back and forth, not really moving otherwise. It was everything that a high school experience should have been. No worrying about hunters, or how they were going to survive. There was no stress, no thoughts of war. If only they could just _stay_ in that moment.

Stiles' brow furrowed a little in silent question as Derek leaned away from him without removing the arms around his waist. The elder teen then leaned in to kiss Stiles instead of actually saying anything as they stilled in place and the younger boy shifted his hand to rest on the back of Derek's neck. "Stop thinking about it," Derek murmured as he broke the kiss, brushing his nose against Stiles'.

The younger teen let out a heavy breath, keeping his eyes closed as Derek pressed a kiss to his forehead. "Thinking about what?" replied Stiles, his voice light as if he had not just been dwelling on the bad things in their lives.

"You know what." Derek smiled a little as he leaned away enough to look at the other boy. "Forget about all that, even if just for tonight."

"Yeah, okay. I can do that." The younger teen smiled at Derek before stealing another kiss as the song changed to one with a faster beat. He then laughed as Scott grabbed his arm to drag him over to where everyone else was dancing in a group because apparently Lydia demanded he dance with her next. Once in front of her, Stiles bowed dramatically and held a hand out, causing the beta to roll her eyes, though the faint upturn of her lips was fond as she took his hand. Derek smiled to himself as he watched them, stepping aside to go sit back down at the table where Isaac and Jackson were.

"I'll be right back," Stiles told Derek with a smile, chastely kissing the other teen before he left the gym to head to the bathroom down the hall and up the stairs as the bathrooms on the first floor were in repair.

The halls were dark and quiet, save the sound of the music from the gym that grew fainter the farther Stiles walked. He frowned a little, glancing over his shoulder once he got up the stairs to the next floor. He stopped by his locker, grabbing the pain medication stashed in the back corner before continuing to the bathroom. His knee was bothering him a bit, so he only wanted to take one. He wanted to be able to enjoy the rest of the night and not be bothered by his knee.

Stiles took the pill, cupping his hand under the sink faucet to get some water to chase it with, before turning off the sink again and drying his hands. The teen let out a heavy breath, taking a moment to close his eyes as he tilted his head forward until his forehead rested against the mirror above the sink. "Calm down," he said to himself, shaking his head a little before lifting it once again. "Everything's fine. Relax. You're fine."

The teen took another deep breath, not sure where the sudden feeling of dread was coming from. It had been bothering him all night, but it seemed to grow worse as he stepped out into the hallway. Stiles glanced down either direction before starting toward the stairs again. The teen stopped a few feet away from the bathroom when he heard a loud, sudden clanging noise from the darker end of the hallway, and he slowly turned to look in that direction. "Scott?" he asked slowly, his voice unsure even to his own ears. Why would Scott be down in the hallway?

Stiles waited a moment before he took a deep breath and a step forward only to freeze once again at the sound of metal scraping behind him. Stiles closed his eyes and took a moment, telling himself that he was probably imagining things, before turning to look again. However, that time, he did see someone in the hall, walking toward him while idly dragging what looked to be a rather large blade along the lockers. "M-Matt? What're you doing?" Stiles asked, taking a stumbling step backward.

The other teen simply raised a brow in response, pulling the knife in his hand away from the lockers, and holy hell, was that a crossbow strapped to his back? "So, you're the little human in the pack of wolves," Matt stated, his voice holding an edge to it that Stiles had never heard before, though reminded him vaguely of Victoria Argent. "We have some.. questions for you."

"We?" Stiles laughed nervously, ruffling his hair as he took another step backward, taking him farther away from Matt and the stairs all at the same time. Stiles glanced toward him, wondering if he could manage to get himself down the stairs without breaking something.

"Oh, didn't you hear? After some werewolf ripped out my parents' throats, the Argents took me in." Matt flashed a grin that was purely terrifying, something that Stiles had never thought the other teen could manage. "Break the human, break the pack." Stiles opened his mouth to respond, but clamped his mouth shut when he saw the other teen pulling the crossbow off of his back where it had been strapped. "Do yourself a favor, Stilinski, and make this a challenge. _Run_."

"Shit." Stiles barely breathed the word before he turned around and took off running down the hallway, slamming into a row of lockers as he took a corner to sharp and slid. He shouted for Scott or Derek, though he knew the music in the gym would be too loud for them to hear over. Stiles could only hope that someone else might hear before he quietened and ducked into one of the dark classrooms to hide from Matt, who he could still hear coming down the hallway.


End file.
